Vengeance!
by Averell Torrent
Summary: Kushina and Minato survived the attack of the Kyuubi, but fourty-five years after that event, a dark figure looks out over the village. An old enemy, a feared hatred for his old home. He vows the destruction and suffering of all who stand in his way and those who betrayed him. He pledges that all debts will be paid in full. He swears Vengeance!
1. Chapter 1

**[A/N] This is many years later than the start of the original Naruto series, so there are some technological advances, and Konoha is much more of a city now. Guns will be present in the story, but I try to keep their involvement to a minimum like a precious commodity rather than commonplace. Not only this, but it is an AU. Minato and Kushina are alive, as well as some other changes that greatly impact the world. Anyways, this will be a revenge story as signified by the title. Hopefully I can entertain with the things I do differently.**  
 **I would like to thank Isafish, Nyabi, Tomarrylover, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter.**

* * *

 ** _He_ **stood on the crest of a large hill, flanked by two younger men. They were able to look out at the vast forest of trees and the large walls of the village in the distance. It sickened him to even look at the place, but he had something waiting for him.

"I've climbed the mountains in Kumo and hiked the deserts of Suna, but there's really no place like Konoha," the travelling companion to his right said.

He looked over at the younger man, once a boy he had saved. But the boy had a debt to pay, one he would collect.

"No, there really isn't, Inari," he said with a snarl. "You are young. You will learn though. You know of what they did to me, but still see the village as great. But it's not. There's a hole in the world, like a great black pit. The vermin of the world inhabit this place. They are not worth the pigs they tend. On top of the hole sits the privileged few, turning beauty into filth and greed. I too, have seen the world and seen its wonders. For the cruelty of men is wondrous."

Inari nodded. "That's why you came back, right? To fix the wrongs that were done to you?"

"Yes. However, the man that left this place is dead to the world for now. Grendel Ootsutsuki. That is the name I have taken. If you call me anything else while we are in Konoha, I will kill you." He turned to the man on his left. "That goes for you too. We can't take any chances. You each know the Genjutsu I thought you and why. Use it if you need it at any time. Now go. Find our friends and set the plan in motion. Start with Orochimaru."

* * *

 _ **Grendel** _walked through the cobbled streets of Konoha, his hooded cloak covering his head and partially hiding his face. His face was covered in tribal tattoos, but he refused to take any chances. He thought about Inari, who he had sent off, with a large sum of money, to buy them a home large enough to serve their needs for the time being. It would only be the start of what he had planned.

He brushed passed people, heading towards the heart of the village. He had people to see and so many things to do before the day was done. _'I wonder how little everything has really changed. Polished shit, but still the same old.'_ He was broken from his thoughts as he collided with someone rather than brushing by.

"Pardon me, I didn't see where I-" He stopped himself, looking at who he had bumped into. The past years showed, and it was clear that age had ravaged the man. Nearly thirty years had past, but he would never forget him.

"No, excuse me. I should have stepped aside," Minato said.

Hundreds of thoughts and plans ran through Grendel's head, but none of them were ready yet. It wasn't time, and patience was key. What was another month on thirty years? He gave a small bow. "No, Lord Hokage. Forgive me. While I had hoped to meet you, I had not thought it would be under these circumstances."

"Oh really? You actually seem somewhat familiar."

"I get that a lot. I've travelled quite a bit, but you and I have never met. I am actually intending to host a party here in Konoha as soon as I get settled. My travels have gained me quite a bit of wealth, and now I'm just ready to relax for a while."

"Well, I do hope to see your party. For now, I do have to go. Farewell for now…" Minato paused, looking at the man with a questioning expression.

"Grendel. My name is Grendel."

"Nice to meet you, Grendel," Minato said before continuing on his way.

Grendel just kept walking. Outside he was calm, but inside he was infuriated that he had to pass up such a prime opportunity. But he knew that taking that opening would ruin his plan. He smirked. "There's a hole in the world like a great black pit, and it's filled with people who are filled with shit!" he whispered venomously. "And the vermin of the world inhabit it. But not for long... They all deserve to die."

* * *

 ** _The_ **sun was beginning to set as he walked towards where he and Inari had planned to meet up. He was ready to get to a quiet place to think, but stopped and stood next to a bakery. The smell filled his nostrils and made his stomach growl.

A bell on the door rang out as he entered and stepped up to the counter. There were several pastries encased in glass, but no one behind the counter. He waited, his face taking on a thoughtful expression. His fingers drummed on the case.

"Can I help you?" a woman asked as she came from the back room. Their appearance surprised him almost as much as who they were. Her hair was out of place, dishevelled, and the look on her face...

For a moment, he thought it was something like shame or embarrassment. He was ready to wave it off before another man walked out of the back and adjusted his clothes.

"I'll head back home to train with our children, Hinata," the man said.

He recognized the man, and, as he understood what the implications were, rage boiled and writhed within him. Hinata had been one of the few people that he had liked. One of the few who could garner his truest respect, even after everything that had happened. Yet, she was now with Sasuke Uchiha, one of the few he had always hated. But he suppressed it, concentrated and redirected it. His eyes followed Sasuke out of the bakery before they again locked on Hinata. Her face was red under his stare.

"I would like four of whatever three things you recommend," he said with a smile, ignoring what had happened, for the moment at least. "I'm Grendel, by the way."

Hinata nodded and began picking things for his order. It only took her a few minutes to get everything boxed, priced, and put on the counter. "Here you go, Grendel," she said with a sheepish smile.

Grendel opened the box and looked it over before smiling at her again. "Good choice," he said, passing her the money. "By the way, I must ask. The look on your face when you came from the back, it makes things so obvious. Why are you bending over for someone as insufferable as an Uchiha?"

Hinata's entire face went red. "I-He's-I'm his wife," she forced herself to say. She looked down, avoiding his gaze. "It was an arranged marriage," she said quietly.

Grendel leaned forward, brushing the bangs off of her forehead. She tried to stop him, but he had already seen what he had meant to. "Your eyes give away your heritage, and that seal betrays your fate."

Hinata brushed away his hands. "What would you know about it?" she asked, finally looking at him with rage in her eyes.

 _'Burning bright. Might there be hope? How strong is it really?'_ he thought to himself.

"You are pathetic," Grendel said, extinguishing that fire.

She was shocked by his words, her face draining and eyes becoming dull.

He laughed. "For such a brief moment you had fire in your eyes, a rage burning in an inferno. But, you let others dictate your life without argument, without complaint, or even thoughts of hatred for those that would control you. So easily did three little words snuff out even the faintest spark. I used to be like you. Pathetic. But now I dream of their screams. I wonder if, when the time comes, you are even capable of choosing your path. It's a shame." He grabbed her hair and leaned in close, pulling her ear to his lips.

He whispered something that stopped her breath, made her eyes go wide, and froze her. He continued to whisper for several seconds before letting her go. As he released her, she fell to her knees behind the counter. He looked over the counter down at her and laughed.

"Truly pathetic," he said. "How disappointing. Try to tell anyone, and the seal I put on you will kill you in one of twelve random and horrible ways," he said, sounding cheery.

He grabbed the box and left, knowing that she might very well be instrumental to what was planned. But even if she wouldn't be useful, the orchestra could still be played without her.

* * *

 ** _Darkness_** closed in on her, clouding everything. She fought against it, desperate to not be swallowed by it. Something moved around her, a figure she needed to find. She couldn't see it, though she could hear it taunting her.

Cruel laughter echoed through the darkness.

"I'll catch you eventually!" she shouted.

"Maybe," the figure teased. "But what are you going to do then? By then, I'll have had my hands on everything you love."

Kushina jolted awake, her vision coming into focus. Her arm tingled with numbness and her face was sore from having slept on her arm. She sighed in annoyance, fixing the papers on her desk.

It had been a long day at the academy, and now she was just ready go home and relax with Minato and their daughter. She hummed to herself as she stretched. Her mind wandered to the nightmare and the dark figure.

 _'It was so vivid. Stronger than usual.'_ She thought bout the malice it gave off, compared to the others she had. _'Pure hatred. I haven't felt it like that since-'_ She shook her head of the thought.

She had suffered these nightmares all her life, but they had gotten worse in recent years, and more so in the past months. _'I should probably make an appointment with the therapist again,'_ she thought to herself.

She stood up, her bones popping here and there as she locked up and left. It was already dark out and she was exhausted. She wiped remnants of sleep from her eyes and yawned. Her footsteps were fast, trying to get home quickly.

A board came down behind her and slammed into her head. She hit the ground with a thud before a man grabbed her legs and dragged her into the alley. He ripped off one of her sleeves and shoved it into her mouth before stabbing a blade into her ribs. Her reaction was immediate as her eyes flew open and she tried screaming.

He stabbed her again. Her vision blurred from the pain. She felt the blade cut into her once again before large hands grabbed her attacker and slammed him into a wall.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" the newcomer demanded.

"I'm hurting them, just like you said was the plan! This is a prime opportunity. She was tired, alone, and in the dark!" her attacker responded.

"It was a prime opportunity, but I told you patience was key! This is too soon! You think not of the consequences. They will all burn, my vengeance will make them suffer, but this is too soon."

There was a sigh. "Yes, master. I understand."

"Good. Now we have to deal with this."

Grendel formed two hand signs before placing his right hand to a wall. Darkness engulfed the bricks and metal panels before a shadow emerged with arms and legs of its own. As it bore down on Kushina, she again lost consciousness.

* * *

 _ **"You**_ are rash and impatient, Inari. And I realize now that I have not stressed how important waiting for just the right moment is," Grendel said as he and Inari stood on top of a tall building, looking out across the village. "Vengeance against those who betrayed me will simply be a reward for my patience. You see? It's the slow knife, the knife that takes it's time, the knife that waits years without forgetting, that slips quietly between the bones. That's the knife," he said, holding up a detonator, "that cuts deepest."

He pressed the trigger, and the entire Hokage tower suddenly went up in flames and explosions. Grendel cackled as the structure came crashing down, engulfing the surrounding buildings and streets in smoke and dust.

"This took me several hours to do, moving silently and slowly. I could have easily used a jutsu to do this, could have done it quickly without being known, but by waiting, I have opened so many avenues! No chakra for them to see. An unknown enemy, a monster they have to deal with."

Inari looked at him for a moment before nodding. "I shall wait then, and follow your lead master."

"Do not wait too long when the time comes. Wait long enough and you will know the right time to strike. That is why you are here. I will need you to act on your own in the coming months, so you need to learn quickly. Come. It's time for trial by fire."

* * *

 ** _Minato_ **paced back and forth on the other side of the door, waiting to hear from the doctor. None of them knew where Kushina had come from. In the chaos of the tower exploding, she had seemed to just appear. While most of the people who worked in the tower had gone home for the night, several deaths were reported. At the same time, they had no leads. It had been caused by explosives rather than jutsu, leaving being no chakra signature to be traced. Whoever had done it covered their tracks well, though he had his theories.

The doctor stepped through the door, walking over to him. "Lord Hokage, I've got good news and bad news," he said.

"Alright, what's the good news?"

"Well, we don't know who did this to your wife, punctured lung, multiple stab wounds to the ribs, it was bad. On the same token, they fixed her wounds before dropping her off here. The lung had been drained of fluid and sealed with some sort of resin to keep her alive. She'll live. However, the bad news is that she's in a coma. We don't know what's causing it. All of her scans are reading normal and there's nothing wrong with her as far as we can tell. Jiraiya is in there looking for seals that might be the cause of this. Personally, it looks to me like the resin itself could be the problem. But we can't remove it, we tried. It's not something we can identify, can't be cut through, and it lines the inside of her lung as well. Trying to remove it at this point would cause more harm than good. But for now, she's alive."

"Thank you," Minato said, moving over to a chair. He finally sat down and let his body loosen up. As he did so, memories hit him like a brick.

* * *

 **THIRTY YEARS AGO**

 _ **"All**_ debts will be paid in full!" the man shouted as he was dragged down a hallway.

When he disappeared, Minato stepped aside with the new Tsuchikage, the granddaughter of the last.

"Why did you give him such a light sentence?!" she demanded. "He should be executed! Whatever the worst sentence is, he deserves it! Or maybe you're just favoring your family!"

"Don't you dare accuse me of letting my family off easy. You and I both know that people in our position can't compromise like that. He's getting the worst. The prison he's being sent to has a rule about sentences over twenty years. If anyone can survive that long they are freed," Minato said. "The reason why is because no one ever survives that long. The few that have come out of that place come out changed and broken. He'll die there, trust me."

"What prison is he being sent to? And why even have that rule?"

"Your grandfather used it, though he hated doing so. Knowledge of it is restricted from the general public. It's worse than the Blood Prison. The hope of it keeps them from just killing themselves. The point of it is to break them and brutally end them. Trust me. He's getting the punishment he deserves."

* * *

 **PRESENT TIME**

 ** _Minato_ **jerked awake, the angered screams still echoing in his mind. He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "This is no time to think about the past."

* * *

 _ **Grendel** _walked down the hallway with a sword in hand. Blood ran down the blade's duel edges, forming rivers in the fullers that ran down the central ridges of either side. He cut down anyone who got in his way, anyone who saw him. He seriously hoped Inari would have the timing down for this. Everything had to be perfect. He rounded a corner into a long hallway with three guards at the end. Their eyes darted to his bloody sword, transfixing on him.

They moved to defensive positions, one of them pulling an alarm just as the power went off throughout the entire building. He smirked that the timing had worked so well before moving in and decapitating the first guard. The second brought a war hammer down on his head.

Grendel brought up his sword, pushing the flat of it against the handle of the hammer directly under the head. He pushed the weapon aside, sending blood arcing through the air as he slammed the blade into the man's eye. In one fluid motion he pulled back, blocking a sword strike from the third. As the edges clashed, the guard's sword chipped against his.

"Drink, my lovely Shatter-Heart! Drink on and on!" he screamed with glee. His sword began to resonate, making the crack grow until the sword shattered. He lunged forward in a stabbing motion. He could feel himself lurch forward without moving a muscle.

 _'The Kawarimi?'_

The third guard cut at him from behind. Everything paused as shadows in the hallway suddenly came to life. His bones cracked and blood spattered the walls as solid darkness ripped through and skewered the man, through his arms, legs, and neck, leaving him pinned in midair.

Grendel chuckled. "Close. You almost got me." He spun on his heals, eyeballing the suspended guard. "Bye-bye."

The guard was ripped apart, painting Grendel and everything around them in a wet crimson.

Without flinching at the blood, Grendel spun again, walking to the door they had been guarding. He kicked it in, ready to continue his slaughter.


	2. Chapter 2

**[A/N] Alright, this is going to be a long note, so stick with me. This is important, and anyone with certain expectations of my story needs to understand everything I'm about to say.**

 **Firstly, this story will, in no way, shape, or form, be a NarutoxHinata story. If that makes the story bad in your view, as I know that** _many_ **people, not just the one review, may only read certain pairings or have a heavy preference to one, then do not disappoint yourself with hope that this will change.**

 **That being said; As a direct response to my one review so far, Hinata's inspiration and hope was mostly inspired by Naruto. So, if, for whatever reason, he is not around, then it is my view that the 'fire' in her eyes would dwindle over time and she would eventually be used as a bargaining chip in clan politics. I did not have her married to Sasuke because it would hurt. I did that because, in the interest of the political angle and Sasuke's desire to gain power no mater the cost, a connection to the Hyuuga clan, and possibly a mixing of the Byakugan and Sharingan bloodlines, could be seen as a smart power play.**

 **Moving forward:**

 **This story will be exploring the angle of Minato and Kushina still being alive in ways I don't think most people have thought of. This isn't a 'Naruto was neglected and turned against his family' or 'these two were just really bad people in this version, so let's bash them' type of story. This is a 'some fucked up shit happened to the characters and you don't know what yet' type of story.**

 **I really do hope you enjoy this story, because, as I said, I believe it is a unique take on things. Please leave your thoughts in reviews. While I will not spend my time begging for reviews every chapter, try to keep them to constructive criticism, regardless if it is praise or not. I am not looking for 'good chapter' because that doesn't tell me anything. I'm also not looking for 'this was shit', and for the same reason. Tell me what you like or what you hate, what I need to improve on or keep doing, ask me questions about things you don't understand, help me be a better writer and story-teller for you, my readers. That's all I ask.**

 **I would like to thank Isafish, Nyabi, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter.**

 **Now, let's FINALLY get on with chapter two.**

* * *

 _ **The**_ man rushed into Minato's office in a panic. "Sir, we have a problem. Someone has attacked the Barrier Monitoring Facility! They've sealed themselves inside the sensory room!"

Minato stood up and marched out his office, calling ANBU and other shinobi to his side. His face was expressionless, a side effect from his lack of sleep in the past two days, though rage bubbled just under the surface.

 _'If these are the same people who destroyed the tower, then they might know something about Kushina's condition.'_

* * *

 _ **Grendel**_ sat hunched over the dead body, his face covered in blood. He ripped flesh from bone with his teeth, licking the liquid crimson from his lips and fingers as he chewed and swallowed. The sounds of whimpering and crying made their way to his ears from his other hostages against the wall. His body shook for a moment before he pulled a black, skull mask back over his face. Ominous red lights shone from inside the eyes.

He walked over to the middle of the room where a sphere of clear water floated over a pool. He placed his hand over the surface and watched as seals spread from him. It was filled with black roots that corrupted the orb, changing it and altering it's entirety. The surface rippled and spasmed, nearly losing all form until it became clear again. He chuckled once more.

"Let your entire world go dark, your safety become a prison, and your power become death," he said. He pulled his hands away and watched the entire monitoring system turn black for a moment and then return to normal. "Now then, what to do with my left overs? Lucky me, I brought a to-go box." He unfurled a sealing scroll.

* * *

 _ **Minato**_ stood at the entrance to the barrier monitoring facility as ANBU surrounded the building. "Do we know what the situation is inside?"

"No," the ANBU commander said. "Any scouts we sent in have stopped reporting."

A black mass crashed through a wall above them. It landed in front of Minato, shadows surrounding it as it took shape. Grendel took form and stood tall, glaring at the aged Kage through his mask.

He took a small bow. "At last I have the honor of meeting you, our useless head of state." His voice was distorted, broken and shifting.

"Who are you?" Minato asked.

Grendel laughed. "Don't you mean 'what'? I am the face all see at the end of their journey. I am a jingo!" He lunged forward, arm reared back for a heavy punch. Laughter came from his mask as the fist was caught. His elder opponent was visibly struggling to hold back his sudden attack. "I am your end! I am the fire that will sweep through your world and consume it all!" He leaned back, bringing his leg up in a hard kick, being blocked again. "I am he who will destroy this village, and no one is going to hinder my efforts. How long can you keep up something like this?" His voice was calm, but a smirk could be heard on his words.

"I'll manage."

"It's not a matter of if, Minato. With me, it's always a matter of when." He took a backstep, dodging a sword as the ANBU moved in on him. "So many against little old me? How unfair. However will all of you keep up?"

He turned and kicked, breaking one of the ANBU's knees. Blades came down on him and some pulled their guns, but he leapt into the air and grabbed one of their heads on the way down. He twisted and pulled to the side, breaking their neck with a snap and a scream cut short.

"Ooo, how scary. You're too tough for me!" he shouted a mocking and mirthful tone.

An ANBU tried to jab at his shoulder, but he knocked the attack away. "A Hyuga? That Byakugan will not fucking do." He rushed in and savagely punched the ANBU's mask. Both the mask and his skull splintered and caved inward with a sickening crunch.

His body became a cloud of shadow as he was assailed by gunfire. Blades went flying from his tumultuous form, killing a dozen ANBU in seconds.

"Katon: Fireball Jutsu!" someone yelled as his body returned to normal.

Grendel stared into the flames as they flew at him, catching and absorbing the attack. His hands smoked as everyone's sight readjusted. "Now who threw that? It was quite rude," Grendel said. "Me and these fine ANBU were having quite a bit of fun."

"Over here, asshole," a young woman called out. Grendel looked at her, the thick red hair, blue eyes, and toned body. She wore light combat robes with armor plating on her shoulders and chest. But his attention was easily caught by the whisker marks on her cheeks.

"Kimiko, get back. I can handle this," Minato said.

"Kimiko Namikaze. Now this is a treat. I thought finding you would be harder, but you've come right to me."

"You're here for her? Why?" Minato asked.

"It really doesn't matter right now. I've done what I came here to do. I'm going home now," Grendel said.

"What makes you think we're going to let you walk away?" Kimiko asked scornfully.

Grendel laughed. "Who said I need you to _let_ me do anything. You can't stop me from leaving. Even if your father were in his prime, neither of you can stop me."

Kimiko pulled a triple-pronged kunai from her robes and threw it at Grendel. He caught the blade in his hand and, as Kimiko teleported above him, grabbed her leg and threw her back.

"Impressive, but I've had so many years to study that. Ten fucking years to learn and calculate. To improve upon the chaff." As though the light was sucked from his surroundings, Grendel disappeared in a burst of darkness and reappeared behind Minato. He quickly pushed the blade into the Hokage's shoulder. "The weakness within your strength is absent from mine. My name is Death and the end is here." He suddenly disappeared in another burst of darkness.

* * *

 _ **Grendel**_ appeared in the center of a large atrium, breathing heavily.

"Grendel, are you alright?" Inari asked as he entered the room behind his master.

"I'm fine. Just excited." He looked down at his trembling hands. "I didn't expect her to be there. I knew she was a Jounin, but I couldn't have anticipated her intervention."

"Does this change the plan?"

"She is the plan. This changes nothing. First, we finish the renovations here, and then we move to the next stage. Let's get started."

* * *

 _ **Jiraiya**_ held a hand against the orb in the middle of the room, his face sunken and wrinkled with age.

"What the fuck is wrong with this sick bastard?" Minato asked with disgust. He walked over the bloody floor and around the barrier monitoring system. He looked at the only body left behind, what little flesh still on the bones hanging in limp shreds.

"I think the bigger question is why he attacked and where the other bodies went," Kakashi said. He stood in the corner with a small book in his hand, though his visible eye was scanning the room intently. "The bodies he might have taken to eat, but I have no idea why he attacked."

"Is there anything wrong with the barrier?"

Jiraiya stepped back. "All of the seals are still in place and fully functioning. But there is a new one. Something added to the formula. But I don't know what it does, or how to untangle it from the rest."

* * *

 _ **Kimiko**_ walked through the Konoha Academy, which had been turned into a temporary Hokage Tower in the wake of recent events, towards her father's office. She opened the door, halting as she saw Minato in a meeting with a man dressed in black, his face covered in tribal tattoos.

"Hey, Kimiko. I'm glad you could make it," Minato said. "I wanted you to meet our village's newest financial backer. This is Grendel Ootsutsuki."

Grendel turned in his seat to look at her. "It's a pleasure to meet you," he said, holding a hand out to her. "I've been meaning to acquaint myself with the Namikaze family while I settle in."

Kimiko shook his hand, smiling. "Nice to meet you. While I'd like to socialize though, I was told there was a mission for me." She looked to Minato, standing at attention.

"Loyalty is as ever present as always here, lord Hokage," Grendel chuckled. "We'll get plenty of time to socialize, don't you worry. I'm actually the one hiring you. I need an escort to an old family estate."

"I'll get my team ready."

"Actually, if I may, I would like for you to be my only escort."

"And why, exactly, would you want that?" Minato asked.

"I don't need protection, I can handle myself well enough. Truth is, I get lonely without someone to talk to. Makes me stir-crazy."

"And why did you ask for my daughter specifically for this?"

Grendel shrugged. "How better to get friendly with politicians then through their family and with money? Look, I know that recent events have your people on edge, and I completely understand it, but this is also the mission request."

"What do you think?" Minato asked, looking as Kimiko.

She looked Grendel over. "I can handle it."

"Excellent," Grendel exclaimed with glee. "I'm already packed. I will meet you at the East gate whenever you're ready."

Kimiko watched Grendel leave. "Can we trust this guy?"

"I'm not sure," Minato said. "It's why I'm giving you complete authority to unleash the Kyuubi, _if_ it becomes necessary."

* * *

 _ **Grendel**_ walked along an old road, chatting calmly with Kimiko as they traveled East. They had gone at a calm pace, not talking until the second day. He began by slowly prying into her personal life, asking simple questions and tugging at any loose string. He unraveled any he could found as far as he could, always stopping just before she became uncomfortable.

"So, what was your childhood like?" he asked, more blunt than before. "I'm interested in how you grew up, being taught and raised by the Hokage and Kushina Uzumaki, two of the most powerful shinobi to this day, even with their age. It couldn't have been easy."

Kimiko was silent for a time, and he did not press her for answers. He waited, watching her, gauging her reaction.

"It wasn't," she said, after a time. "The training was hard, they were busy when we weren't training, and it's a lot to live up to."

"I bet it is. It's not easy living in someone else's shadow."

"So you know something about that?"

Grendel shrugged. "You could say that. My parents were powerful people, and my clan was the definition of endurance. But they were betrayed, forsaken. My clan was all but wiped out and most of the survivors chose to let it fade away."

"What was your clan?" Kimiko asked.

There was silence for a moment. "We'll be at my estate soon."

"How much farther is it?"

Grendel pushed a branch out of the way, revealing a beach. In the distance, a large island sat on the horizon. "Do you know what that island is?"

She shook her head. "No. What is it?"

"As I thought. She is happy letting it rot and be forgotten. I already have a boat waiting for us down there." He pointed at the edge of the water. "Come on." He stepped onto the sand, walking to a small rowboat. "Give me a hand with this."

They pushed the boat into the water and jumped inside. Grendel rowed, staying silent as they approached the island. It was an eerie quiet, the sound of the paddles against the water standing out against the silence. A thin fog permeated the air and sent a chill down Kimiko's spine. Several minutes passed until they landed.

Kimiko looked around at the ruins around them, crumbled buildings and destroyed areas. Grendel moved among the rubble, gently running a hand over stones and fallen pillars.

"They care about honor so much, but I have stood in the ashes of a million dead souls, and I tell you that honor doesn't matter," Grendel said before he started to hum.

"What is this place?" Kimiko asked. "It feels so cold. So…"

"So dead? Yes, it does. No one has truly lived here in decades. This is Uzu no Kuni, the Land of Whirlpools. Uzushiogakure. Look around you. Do the engravings on the pillars look familiar?"

She looked at a spiral carving, one hand wandering to a faded patch on her shoulder. "It's the same insignia as in Konoha. But it's different, like my old patch."

"The symbol of the Uzumaki clan. You're mother's name, before she changed it to Namikaze to hide her heritage, was Kushina Uzumaki. She is part of the clan that once held this land as dominion. You, a woman in Kumo, and...me."

"You? You're an Uzumaki? But I thought that-"

"My past isn't entirely one of peace and goodness, so I've spent many years using the name of a clan that's been dead for centuries. The Ootsutsuki clan died out a long time ago. In truth, we are all that is left of the Uzumaki clan. There used to be another, a man named Nagato, but he had...fallen to a path that put him at odds with me. I've come across others scattered about, few and far between, but they are out there. But there were once thousands of us. We were once a people of hope and prosperity."

Grendel sat on the ground and sighed. "I sometimes wish that history and people had been kinder to this legacy we are left with. I've been working on plans to rebuild the nation, but what of the clan? We're all but lost, and I don't know what to do about it."

Kimiko sat next to him. "Why are you telling me all of this?"

"Because this is our legacy, and I don't want it to die with me." He watched as the sun began to set in the distance. "It's one of the major reasons I went to Konoha. For you. Kushina has no interest in this, but I can't let you go on without knowing what they've tried to deny you. At the very least, I want the knowledge of who we were to carry on. I will pass on what your mother refuses to."

 **[A/N] A jingo, in simple terms, is a passionate supporter of war, especially for patriotism.**


	3. Chapter 3

**[A/N]** **I would like to thank Isafish, Nyabi, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter.**

* * *

 ** _Kimiko_** walked into the village with Grendel at her side. They had travelled back to Konoha in silence, and now that they were back, she looked solemn.

"Will you come visit me, when you can?" Grendel asked.

She looked at him. "This is a lot to deal with."

"Yes, it is. And that's why I have to ask that you not tell your parents about where we went and the things I taught you."

"Because of my mother, right?" she asked cautiously.

"Yes. I don't know how she would react, and I don't want to know. I know she's in a coma right now. It's hard not to hear the news. But clearly she doesn't want you to know if even your father never speaks of it. If you need to talk or vent, please, come to me. I know you don't know me well, but we _are_ familly. Just, please, take what I've said under consideration." He took her hand tenderly in both of his own. "I will not lie to you. If you chose, you can be our clan's legacy. Tell the Hokage that I will send him his payment. Until next time."

With that, he turned and left.

* * *

 ** _Kushina_** slowly opened her eyes, the scent of food wafting into her nose and the sound of birds coming in from outside. She sat up in her bed, yawning as she wiped the sleep from her eyes. Laughter could be heard, making her smile as she stood and made her way downstairs.

She walked lightly into the kitchen, everything, even the air, feeling soft. Minato stood as the stove, cooking in four separate pots and pans. He turned around to look at her.

"Good morning," he said. "Breakfast is almost ready. *scratch* will be in any second once they get done training." His voice cut out, muffled and distorted to her.

She wasn't shocked or disturbed by the strangeness of it. She tried to be, to realize how odd it was, but it seemed normal. Why? What had he said? "Who will be?"

"*scratch*. He's practicing with *scratch* again. I think Kimiko is learning *scratch*. *scratch* *scratch*. *scratch* just like her mother." His face changed, rotting away. "She'll make a wonderful queen for the Uzumaki."

"No!"

Darkness enveloped her, swallowing the world. She closed her eyes, wanting it all to go away. What was happening? This couldn't be real.

She slowly opened her eyes, the scent of food wafting into her nose and the sound of birds coming in from outside. _'Am I waking up again?'_

"Hey, there she is," someone laughed.

She looked around, seeing Minato and Kimiko at the dinner table with her. They were joined by two figures that seemed to faze in and out of reality. They were shadowed, without faces.

"Don't give her such a hard time," Minato said to one of the shadows. "She's had a hard week."

"I know. Packing is a strain for anyone, but it's good to revisit home every once in a while, right, Kushina?"

"I'm fine, really *scratch, just tired." She felt ill as she said words she didn't understand. _'Going home? But I am home?'_

Reality bent and twisted around her. Darkness clawed at the fringes of her vision. There was something there, she knew there was, but she couldn't see it. But it could see her. She could feel it, feel its hate.

Things came back into focus. She was surrounded by dark figures, each blurred and faded. Two were beside her, and she could somehow tell that they were the same from dinner. They were in Uzushio again, the large village busy around her. With a smile on her face, she ran through the crowd and wrapped another two in her arms.

"*scratch, *scratch* it's so good to see you two again," she said with glee.

Something wet coated her hand. She looked down, able to see herself stabbing one of them in the stomach. Blood flowed up her arm, against gravity. The sky became dark. Stone buildings crumbled to dust and rubble around her. Screams could be heard.

"*scratch*! No, no *scratch*! Don't leave me," she cried. She looked around, desperate to find help. The people had come into focus, given physical form as their bodies were strewn about the ruins. She looked back down to see a woman, dead in her arms, looking back at her with hollow eyes. "Mom. No. Why? Please!" She held the body close. Heavy thuds sounded in her ears. She looked up, seeing a figure standing there. It was dark, not all there. Like a glitching screen, it broke in and out of reality. "Help me. You have to help me!"

"Why?"

His question stunned her. How was that not obvious? "What do you mean why? She's dying! Help me save my mother!"

"If you didn't want her to die, then why did you murder her?"

She froze. _'No. No, no, no!'_

Though he had no face, she new he was smirking down at her. "Why did you do it?" He reached forward, grabbing her hair and lifting her off the ground. "You feel bad? You feel regret? I'm sorry, but fuck that."

The world bent again. She was standing in a field with old ruins around her. There were no bodies and the fallen pillars were crumbling with age. It was old, it was gone. She could forget. The sky ripped open, letting darkness descend on her. Shadows covered the ground. Rotting corpses fell from above, littering the earth, filling the air with a foul stench.

She cried at the sight, seeing the faces she knew, the dead hating her. Something moved to her left, catching her watery gaze. Limbs moved, snapping back into place to lift their body.

"Kushina," the dead said. It's face filled her with terror. Shadows filled the body, giving it life and turning it into the figure that had been taunting her. "Kushina. Watch! Watch as we reanimate the corpses that you abandoned. We were dismantled! You left us mishandled! You can't run anymore, dirty brother killer!" It was suddenly in front of her, it's hands around her neck. Electricity burned through her. Her body began to shatter like glass, her limbs breaking off. "First, I will break you to pieces, just like you were your *scratch*."

The world fractured.

She slowly opened her eyes and sat up in her bed. Everything was calm. It was just another nightmare. She sighed in relief. Something moved in the corner of the room, hitching her breath. Her eyes crept upward. Groaning as if in pain was the dark figure. She blinked and it was on top of her, screaming.

Knives were stabbed into her chest. "Then, I will kill you again, like you killed your own mother." It pulled her close, dark tendrils worming their way into her ear with one simple message. "Welcome to the world where dreams become nightmares."

* * *

 ** _Grendel_** stood in his office, looking out the window while fiddling with a seal on his neck. "So who are you supposed to be?" He turned to see a dark robed man standing behind him. "I don't remember inviting you into my home."

"I'm just here to see how things are going for you," the man said.

"If that's all, you can go."

"Come on, don't be like that. The prodigal son has returned after surviving the Twenty-Year Prison."

Grendel tensed. "Who are you?"

"Someone who knows you didn't really kill the Tsuchikage. That an innocent man was sent to Hell on Earth."

"How would you know that?" Grendel asked with a laugh. "Everyone saw me do it."

"Because I did it. I did it while wearing your face. So easy to kill someone when they think you're a friend."

"So what?"

"That's all the reaction I get? 'So what?' No anger? No rage?"

"None. I don't hold any ill will towards you. I don't care that you framed me. Now then, is that all you came here for?"

"Well, I was honestly interested in how a fight between us would go, how you would react. A little underwhelming, but also impressive. Oh well."

"I really don't have any ill will towards you, but my plans don't culminate for another five months," Grendel said.

The man suddenly doubled over and spit up blood. "When did you-"

Inari stepped out of the shadows, pulling a blade free in one fluid motion. "No one can know his true name yet," he said. Light glinted off the blade and the blood coating it.

"Wait. Don't you want to know why I did it?" the man asked, sounding desperate.

"How pathetic. You came in here expecting to fight me?" Grendel asked. He turned away, waving a hand. "No. I don't care why. Finally, another loose end taken care of. Finish him off and get rid of the body." He hummed in thought. "Just the body. I've got an idea for the head."

* * *

" ** _So_** my plan is, of course, to host a major party in my home once everything is complete," Grendel said, sitting across from Minato. "But I will also be having delegates and guests from all over the elemental nations. What I would like to do, in order to avoid trouble, is go through whatever processes I need to in order to give my property full extraterritorial status."

"You don't trust my shinobi?" Minato asked. He stared at Grendel with a critical eye.

" _That_ is not the problem. I would like to bear responsibility for the events. With my property on the edge of the village, it would make having guests easy without disrupting day-to-day affairs if any of the guests are diplomats or politicians. All in all, it's just to help you avoid international incidents and allow me to handle business at my events as I deem fit."

Minato fell silent, thinking about it for a moment. He leaned forward, folding his hands in front of his face. "If you think you can handle any politics going on at your parties, then I'll draw up the paperwork needed. It's the least I can do with the support you've given to rebuild the damage from the recent attacks these past two months."

Grendel smiled. "Of course. I hear that the same attacker has been hitting your supply chains and beat some of your shinobi to death with a head on a spear. My only hope is that you find out who the monster responsible is. And, again, thank you, Lord Hokage."

* * *

 ** _Gaara_** sat in his office, holding a letter.

 _Lord Gaara, Godaime Kazekage,_

 _My name is Grendel Ootsutsuki, and I invite you to my home in Konoha for a grand event. I will be hosting musicians, actors, diplomats, as well as the average citizen for a celebration unlike any other. Details are below._

He skimmed over the rest of the invitation with a sigh. "Temari. Ready us an escort. We're going to Konoha. Apparently, we've been invited to a party."

* * *

 ** _Kimiko_** walked up to the massive mansion that had been built in the recent months, though the sounds of construction still rang throughout the building.

"Can I help you?" a man asked. He stepped through the main archway in front of her.

"I'm here to see Grendel. My name's Kimiko," She said.

"Ah, yes. He spoke of you. Right this way." He turned and led her inside.

The atrium was vast with large staircases leading to upper floors. They went up to the fourth floor and down a hallway to an open office. Grendel was reading at his desk, putting down the book and standing to greet them as they entered.

"It's good to see you again, Kimiko," Grendel said. "Thank you, Inari. You can go."

Inari gave a small bow, quickly turning to leave.

"Hello, Grendel."

He walked around to her, wrapping his arms around her in a hug. " What brings you to my home?"

"I thought about what you said," she replied, taking a step back. "I wanted to talk about our clan with you. And...I haven't told my father about where your estate is. With my mom in her coma, the only one I can talk to is you."

"I'm glad you trust me. So tell me, what did you want to discuss?" He pulled out a chair for her and sat down on the edge of his desk.

"I wanted to know what actually happened to our clan," she said as she sat down. "You never actually told me what happened to our clan and the village."

"No, I didn't." He paused, taking a moment to collect his thoughts. "Well, sometime around the start of the Third Shinobi War, Iwa used one of their Biju to destroy the country in a surprise attack. It was to get rid of the fuinjutsu that they feared, and to put forces on both sides of Konoha. Rather tactical, despite their ultimate loss in the war."

She thought about his answer for a moment and looked down. "What about the-" She paused, putting a hand over her belly.

"What about the Kyuubi?" he finished for her.

Her eyes went wide, slowly looking up at him. "How did you know?"

"My guess is, you want to know about the seal used to put it in you, and why your mother put it inside you instead of someone else. The truth is that the Fox has been in our clan for quite some time. Mito Uzumaki held it before your mother. In fact, there is a very rich history behind it."

"Grendel, how did you know that I had the Kyuubi in me?"

He paused. "Kimiko, I want to tell you the truth. I told you I came to Konoha for you. What I left out, was that I had come _back_ to Konoha. I left here thirty years ago, and I knew the previous host. I also know that your parents would never trust anyone other than their own blood with it. It was either in Kushina or you, and I-" He stopped himself. There was a thick silence as he considered his next words carefully. "In the coming months, people are going to say horrible things about me. I didn't leave here on good terms. Dark things are going to come to light about me and...I just don't want to hurt you."

Kimiko stood and wrapped her arms around him. "I'll trust you, but I want the full story from you."

"Give me three months, and you'll have it. You'll have it all. Until then, I want to train you. It's time you learned of a great power belonging to our clan."

* * *

 ** _Grendel_** stood at the main entrance to his home, smiling as a group walked towards him. He could already recognize the Kazekage. "Lord Kazekage. You're early. The party isn't for another three months," he said.

"I'm here for the one that invited me," Gaara said, glaring at Grendel. "The other one."

Grendel kept smiling. "Oh I knew who you meant. Right this way. I've already had rooms prepared for you." The ground shook under their feet. "Excuse the noise. He's training with my new protege. It's beautiful. Want to see?"

* * *

 ** _Machines_** hummed and a heart monitor steadily toned in the small hospital room. Kimiko sat beside her mother with a worried expression. _'It's nearly been five months, mom. Please, wake up,'_ she thought.

Kushina inhaled loudly, her body jerking upright. Skin at the edges of her mouth tore, her mouth unable to open wide enough for her agonized wail.

* * *

" ** _Kushina,_** how are you feeling?" Minato asked. Doctors looked her over while he held her hand.

"I'm fine, Minato," she said. "If anything, I feel better than I have in years."

"Whoever attacked you used a resin to seal your lung," Jiraiya said. "As your wound healed, it broke down and entered your bloodstream. It, along with several seals that I can't even begin to comprehend, prevented any atrophy in your body and have been providing nutrition over the months. It's like you've only been sleeping. They wanted you to survive, but those same seals were keeping you from waking up. Until now."

"I want to get back to work," she said, trying to get out of bed.

"Hey, calm down, mom," Kimiko said.

"No. The people that attacked me are still out there, and eventually they're going to come back for me anyways."

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Minato asked.

Kushina sighed. "One attacked me. He stabbed me over and over. Someone else pulled him off and...I thought he was protecting me, but he said it was too soon. He said everyone was going to burn when the time came. The first one called him master. I've been in this bed for four and a half months and you're all telling me I'm fine. I'm done laying back while some crazy person goes around killing people. Now, someone please tell me what the fuck I've missed."

* * *

 ** _He_** sat naked as he pulled his right leg up, examining the metal plates that covered both of his legs. "Hand me a screwdriver."

Inari stepped forward with a toolbox, handing his master what he asked for.

He took the tool and opened the black plates on his leg, looking at the mechanisms that whirred with any small movement he made. He adjusted the mechanical gears and parts. His right arm, up to the shoulder, and his left arm, up to the elbow, were made up of the same plates and pieces.

"I need my body to be in perfect shape for the party tonight. Is everything else ready?"

"It is. I also prepared the seals for you, whenever you're ready to make your final adjustments to them."

"Good. You've been invaluable to be these past months, Inari. We're getting close to our grand unveiling. Now, more than ever, I'm going to need you ready to act on your own."

"I won't disappoint."

"You remember every detail about the seal activation?"

"Each and every one."

"Perfect." Grendel pulled a gear free and set it to the side, replacing it with a new one. He closed the plates and opened his arm, working on its mechanisms. "All that's left is to kill Minato and Kushina and get Kimiko to thank me for it. I'm going to save her from this hole in the world, from the people who are full of shit. Just like I saved you, and just like my nephew saved me." He closed the plates and stood up, pulling on synthetic skin that covered his prosthetics. He then looked at his arms and legs. "On second thought, I'll forego the coverings tonight. Speaking of my nephew, go get him. The guests will be arriving soon, and I want to mingle with my sister a bit. I've waited a long time to talk to her. I've looked forward to this night for a long time. The show is finally about to begin. I'm fucking back."


	4. The Big Reveal

**[A/N]** **I would like to thank Isafish, Nyabi, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter.**

* * *

 _ **The**_ crowd was rapidly getting thicker in front of an exuberant mansion. People, civilians and shinobi alike, from every major country gathered together. Some were already dancing despite the absence of music, and drinking from bottles they had brought themselves.

"This Grendel seems to have a lot of connections," Kushina noted, her arm linked with Minato's.

"Send out a party invitation to everyone you can, especially promising free alcohol, and you'll have a good turn out," a man said as he walked up to them. "Greetings, Kushina. My name is Inari. I work for Grendel, and he has been eager to meet you since he heard of your recovery. Unfortunately, things here have had him busy."

"Well, then where is he? I'm actually looking forward to meeting him with everything I've been told about him."

"He's inside. The guests will be let in momentarily. Right this way." He glanced to Kimiko with a smile and turned, leading them the rest of the way to the entrance.

Standing there, waiting for them, were the other four Kage, their guards, and other leaders from various nations. Gaara kept mostly to himself with his brother, sister, and wife, Matsuri, beside him.

"He did say he wanted to invite politicians as guests, but I didn't expect the other Kage to show up," Minato said.

"Apparently our host wants to make a big impression with everyone," the Tsuchikage said. He adjusted his red and green robes and pulled off his traditional Kage hat. Kushina thought he still looked young for being in office ten years already.

"It would seem that way," Minato replied.

"Yes, my lord does want to make a big impression, but with so many people from all over the world here, we do have one request for their leaders," Inari said. He pulled out a small book. "This is a contract detailing that you, as the leaders, bear responsibility for helping keep your people in line. While my lord has every intention of keeping the peace himself and enforcing his rule, he understands that there may be tension and doesn't want a political incident to cause problems here. This is merely a request that you agree to order your people to stand down if trouble is started, as well as to not start any yourself."

"So why sign the contract?" A, the Raikage, asked. Killer B stood next to him, nodding to a rhythm in his head.

"Because it's written with seals," Kushina answered. "My guess is that a drop of our blood is to serve as our signature."

Inari nodded. "Correct. If you would like to go over the seals to ensure that is all that they do, my lord encourages that you do. All he asks is that you use a blade to slit your finger and press it to the paper. Any finger will do. Though, while it's not necessary, he would like you to sign it as well, Kushina, and you, lady Matsuri. With you being the wives of Kage, he would like those who may speak on their behalf to do the same, though it is not needed. As I said, this is merely to ensure that you help keep your people from starting trouble in his home. Should they become problematic either way, he is more than happy to deal with them himself."

Kushina looked skeptical, but Kimiko stepped forward and pushed a bloody finger to the paper. "If that's all, it's perfectly fine," she said.

Her parents shared a look and nodded. Kushina quickly looked the seals over. "These are incredibly complex, but it seems he's telling the truth," she said before signing along with Minato. The other leaders quickly followed suit.

Inari smiled, closing the book. "Good. With that, the party can begin." He opened the large double doors, leading to a wide atrium. To their right and left were bars, fully stocked with a wide variety of spirits. In the center of the atrium was what could only be described as a disturbing work of modern art, dead branches and animal skulls in a display that unnerved Kushina.

"Perfect timing!" someone shouted through speakers. "Let's get this party started!"

Music began playing and there was no hesitation. The party was suddenly in full swing as the crowd became a kaleidoscopic carnival and filled the mansion in no time at all. Many jumped into the pool that not only took up much of the atrium, but a vast expansion of the back yard as the back wall and a divider opened up, allowing the party to overflow. Some rushed to roulette tables and slot machines. This party had something for everyone.

A man in a clean, dark suit walked up to Kimiko, holding out a hand. "Care to dance?" he asked.

She looked to her parents before disappearing into the crowd, laughing. "Who are you?" she asked as he swept her into a dance.

The man smirked and dipped her. "Call me Naruto."

* * *

 _ **Kushina**_ stood to the side while Minato spoke with the other Kage. Each of them looked stern, but they kept it civil while each of their guards stood back.

"You're a great woman to deal with as much stress as comes with being his wife," a man said. He stood next to her, holding out a drink in one of his metal hands. His hair was red and he wore a dark trench coat. "Especially given recent events. The Hokage tower, your coma, that crazy who attacked the barrier monitoring facility."

She took the glass but didn't drink. The look in her eyes was dry and annoyed. "It has it's moments. And who are you?"

"Just a man with the right connections. So, how are you doing tonight?"

"Tired of wasting time. We're only here to show our appreciation for the host so we can get out of here and get back to hunting down who caused all three of the things you mentioned. But we've been here an hour and can't find him. The other Kage talking politics doesn't help."

"Ah, I see. Well, I'm sorry I took so long, and I was hoping to mingle for a bit, but if you have no interest, then let's get started. Would you please get your husband and the others to calm down. I'm about to make an announcement."

He walked to the side and got on top of one of the bars. As he did so, Kushina was able to see that, past his open coat, he wore shorts over his mechanical legs. There was also a strange necklace around his neck, looking like a large metal scorpion, with no claws or head, that was flattened and spread over his chest. He activated a seal on his neck.

"Everyone, can I have your attention please. My name is Grendel and I would like to thank you all for enjoying my party, for coming out and drinking all my booze," he said with a chuckle that most everyone shared. "I've been planning this for quite some time, and I am extremely happy that it turned out so well. But, you know, I've been lying to all of you. I lied to you on your invitations, I lied to you when I met you, I've been lying for five months, and I lied to you when I got up here and started speaking. My name is not Grendel, not really. No, um, let's see. Grendel was a monster in an old book." He chuckled. "An old legend. He was called a Sceadugenga, a shadow walker. Referred to as the dark doer of hateful deeds in the black nights. It was quite fitting at the time I chose it. But now to my true name. I removed the dye from my hair, and now, I'm going to use a genjutsu to remove the tattoos from my face. I've aged, but here's hoping that my longevity has kept my face looking how you remember it."

He formed a handsign and his face changed. It's structure stayed the same, but the skin became clean, uncovered by the tribal markings.

"That's not possible," Kushina muttered in horror. Everyone fell silent, though most of the younger guests looked confused at the terror others showed.

He laughed. "Why, all of you look like you've seen a ghost. It's me dear friends. Alive and kicking." He paused to tap his prosthetics. "Well, alive at any rate," he said with a laugh. "Ah, good. We haven't lost our sense of humor. Not even when we lose our hands, a lung, a spleen, two kidneys, four ribs, entire sections of skin, the twenty-four vertebrae that make up the spine, a half of a liver on multiple occasions," he paused and reached up, pulling a piece of plastic from his left eye to show a small glass lense, "an eye, and the ability to reproduce DO WE EVER LOSE OUR SENSE OF HUMOR!"

He looked around. "Now then, some of you recognize me. Many wont. When I was tossed into a prison, I was sent there to die and be forgotten. The Twenty-Year Prison."

"Stop. The public isn't allowed to know about that, and you know it!" Minato shouted.

"Shut the fuck up, you piece of shit! You know what you sent me to, your own family. The Twenty-Year Prison is a place where you put people when you want them to suffer and suffer and die. Where do you think I lost so much of my body? And, if you can survive the twenty years, you're allowed to go free. But then, the Hokage passed a law, and, with the help of the other kage and everyone over thirty, made the world forget me. I brought too much shame to the name Uzumaki. Kushina even stopped going by the clan name. But I have always been proud of my heritage. I am the accused killer of the third Tsuchikage, the forgotten older brother of Kushina Uzumaki, and of course," he pointed to Kimiko, "your uncle. Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Victor Uzumaki."


	5. Chapter 5

**[A/N]** **I would like to, once again thank Isafish, Nyabi, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter.**

 **To respond to the reviews;**

 **Mariusz1988:** **The real killer was disposed of back in chapter three.**

 **VFSNAKE: Glad to know you like it.**

 **Black Doberman: I know of two types of "wait, what?". The bad kind of genuine confusion, and the good kind of genuine surprise. I'm happy to know I landed in the second one and did something right.**

 **NarHina: If this chapter doesn't solve your confusion, then I am doing something wrong.**

* * *

 **Thirty Years Ago**

 _ **Victor**_ sat in the chair silently, having given up on arguing with them. Minato and Kushina had survived the attack of Madara Uchiha, the unsealing of the Kyuubi, with his own help, only to stand over him now in judgment. He was innocent, and yet, he was going to suffer now. He looked up, seeing few sympathetic looks.

Orochimaru, having decided against leaving the day of the Kyuubi's rampage, looked at him with sadness. He knew his teacher had argued for him, but most had thrown him to the wolves.

 _'They throw me away like garbage. Even my own blood. No! Especially because they're my blood,'_ he thought to himself.

And it was all because of political bullshit, and he knew it. But even they were not sorry for this.

"Victor Uzumaki" Minato said, "you are sentenced to serve time in the Twenty-Year Prison for your crimes. Do you have any final words before you are escorted to prison?"

He was silent, not saying anything until the guards grabbed his shoulders. "I do have something to say. I am innocent. I did not kill the Tsuchikage. But trust me when I say that you had better hope I die there! The day I'm free, you're all dead! You'll all be on stolen time! I'll kill you all! I'm going to make you all suffer for betraying me! I'll be back like a monster of legend! You're all going to burn for what you're doing to me! I'll light the fucking fires myself!"

"Take him away."

"All debts will be paid in full!" he shouted as he was dragged down a hallway.

When he disappeared, Minato stepped aside with the new Tsuchikage, the granddaughter of the last.

"Why did you give him such a light sentence?!" she demanded. "He should be executed! Whatever the worst sentence is, he deserves it! Or maybe you're just favoring your family!"

"Don't you dare accuse me of letting my family off easy. You and I both know that people in our position can't compromise like that. He's getting the worst. The prison he's being sent to has a rule about sentences over twenty years. If anyone can survive that long they are freed," Minato snapped at her. "The reason why is because no one ever survives that long. The few that have come out of that place come out changed and broken. He'll die there, trust me."

"What prison is he being sent to? And why even have that rule?"

"Your grandfather used it, though he hated doing so. Knowledge of it is restricted from the general public. It's worse than the Blood Prison. The hope of it keeps them from just killing themselves. The point of it is to break them and brutally end them. Trust me. He's getting the punishment he deserves."

* * *

 _ **Minato**_ moved to pull a blade from his coat, managing a single step forward before veins bulged through the skin. His body locked up, leaving him unable to move.

"None of that now, dear brother," Victor said. "Seals remember? You know, something even my sister wouldn't be able to tell you about those seals, is that they are more than just, 'obey the rules' seals. They're, 'obey my fucking rules and don't start a fight or I'll fucking make you beg me to let you die because I just put a booby-trap in your DNA' seals. Don't worry, they still only force you to do what I said. Keep the peace on my property, and you don't die. Of course, I may have left out that you are not allowed to revoke my home's extraterritorial status. Now calm down, and stop intending to kill me. Then you'll be able to move again."

Seconds passed before Minato's body relaxed.

"Even without the seals, your honor would never really let you kill me. I served my time. I survived what you meant to kill me, but I _did_ served my sentence. And the witnesses? With my announcement out of the way, why are we just standing around? Free booze? Free food? Whoever wants to party, whenever they want to party, is welcome to my home at any hour on any day!"

Some people cheered, but the older members of the crowd still looked grim.

He pumped a fist into the air. "The beer will flow, the music will play, and the party will go on until I have run out of money to keep it going!"

The music began playing again, and regardless of some of their inhibitions, some were now too drunk or too young to care. They began to dance, and many went along, keeping up with it.

"Would the Kage and Koyuki Kazahana please report to Victor's office?" Victor's voice asked with a chuckle over the speakers. "I repeat, please report to Victor's office, thank you."

"Where is Kimiko?" Kushina asked, looking around.

"She's right this way madam," Inari said as he walked up beside her, Minato, and the other Kage. "If you would all follow me this way please."

"And if we have no desire to see Victor Uzumaki?" Gaara asked.

"Then feel free to stay and enjoy the party or leave. This has really just been leading up to that announcement, but if you would like to know more, confront him, or see the one who sent you _your_ invitation again before things get too heated , Lord Kazekage, you may all follow me."

Gaara stared at him for a moment before nodding. "Fine. I will follow as well."

"And I'm coming for my daughter, you son of a bitch," Kushina snarled.

"My mother was a good woman, but you're quite right," Inari said. "She was far too submissive. I guess that's how her and I wound up slaves before my lord freed us. Don't treat me like I'm shit just because you're angry at Victor. You're the ones who betrayed him."

"I don't know much about this man, but he killed the Third Tsuchikage," the Tsuchikage said, stopping Kushina from responding. "I'd like know what's going on as well."

Mei, the Mizukage, smirked. "Victor's just as good looking as the last time I saw him. The metal is just icing. Count me in," she said.

A sighed crossing his arms. "I refuse to be the only Kage not knowing what's going on, so lead the way."

"Well, now that I know everyone is going, Koyuki and Kimiko are waiting with Victor, This way."

* * *

" _ **I**_ did not lie to you," Victor said. He stood next to Kimiko, trying to get her to look at him.

"You came here to get back at my parents for something they did to you thirty years ago. What role am I supposed to play in your master plan?" She demanded.

"Should I wait outside?" Koyuki asked as she stood in the corner.

"No. Just…" Victor sighed and looked back at Kimiko. "I came here for you! To protect you, to save you from them. That has never been a lie! My never telling you that you were not my only motivation was a half-truth at worst. Your parents, my sister and brother-in-law, betrayed me. When I finally could, I came back to ensure that they could never make you suffer the same fate."

"He is telling you the truth," another said.

She looked over at the man she had been dancing with before. He had rough blonde hair and a rugged look. "And who are you? You work for him?"

"No. I work with him. We share a goal." His eyes, red and dark enough to be mistaken for brown, changed to a vivid crimson. "Kimiko, When I was fifteen, the day they sent Victor away, I tried to take you from Konoha, when you were a baby." The eyes turned into an ocean blue. "I know what it's like to have to chose between freedom and family, and I know what it's like to have to choose between family and family. When I tried to take you, my parents knocked me out and ripped the Kyuubi from me. When I woke up, I was in a morgue!" He wiped makeup from his face, revealing whiskers on his cheeks. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I'm your brother, Kimiko."

"I don't have a brother. They would have told me."

"Would they? Like they told you about the Uzumaki, about your uncle? There's a lot that they tried keeping from us. They didn't just want to forget the Uzumaki because of Victor. It was in the past, meaningless to them, worth forgetting. They tried to stop me from learning it, but I took all the knowledge about it from their library before they could get rid of it. And then I went to my uncle. I was always closer to him. He was always ready to teach me."

There was a knock on the door. "My lord, the others are here," Inari said from outside.

"Send them in," Victor said.

Naruto adjusted himself for a moment and took a breath. The moment Minato came through the door, he lunged forward with a savage punch that sent his father to the floor. The others were too shocked to stop him as he stepped forward and kicked Minato in the ribs. He took a knee and started punching in a blind rage.

"You like to hurt people?! Victor?! Kimiko?! ME?! You don't care what anyone feels! It's time for _you_ to feel agony!"

"Enough!" Victor shouted. "I think you've made your point."

"Not nearly enough. I didn't get to make the point to my mother yet. But you're right," Naruto said. He stood back up and looked at his knuckles. He wiped blood, both his and Minato's, off on his pants. "Hello, mother." He glared at Kushina.

* * *

 **Thirty Years Ago**

 _ **Naruto**_ grabbed Orochimaru's arm as he came outside. "What happened in there? Where's Victor?" he asked in a panic.

Orochimaru looked down. "I did what I could, but they sent him to a place I wouldn't go even in my crazier days, and they've already left. I'm sorry."

"No, please. There has to be something we can do."

Orochimaru sighed, his eyes darting back and forth as he glanced around. "There is one thing. We could free him while he's in transit. You would need to meet me at the West gate as soon as you can. Grab whatever you need to take with you. This is treason. We won't be coming back."

Naruto nodded. "There's only two things I need to grab. And Sensei. If I don't show up in five minutes, go without me. Get him back."

"If that happens, I'll meet you at that safe-house we hid in during Kirigakure's Civil War."

Naruto disappeared in a shunshin and reappeared in his home. He ran to his room and reached under the bed, pulling out a large scroll that he then sealed into a tattoo on his arm. He then turned and walked down the halls to another room.

As he stepped inside, there was cooing from a crib in front of him. He moved close, looking down at his baby sister. "Let's get you out of here, Kimiko. We can't wait for them to betray us too."

"Betray you? You're the one about to kidnap my daughter," Kushina said behind him.

He turned around to look at her. "What would happen to her if I left her with you? You're letting your own brother be sentenced for a crime he's innocent of. What would happen to us if we're left with you?"

"People saw him do it. There's nothing we can do."

"We live in a world where people can cast illusions with the wave of a hand. It's bad enough that he was captured by Iwa before escaping and coming back. The things we left him behind to suffer. And now he's got to endure more? Whenever I've wanted to learn more, to be more, he's been there for me. Now I have to be there for him."

Kushina sighed. "I'm sorry." She rushed in and sent a fist flying at Naruto. He blacked out as her attack connected with his face.

* * *

 _ **When**_ Naruto opened his eyes, he could feel his body burning, his skin scalding against the metal. He looked around, seeing that he was in some sort of lab. As he tried to sit up, there was a stabbing pain in his stomach. He lifted up his shirt to look at the seal only to see a large burn scar in its place.

"No. What happened? Kurama? Kurama?!" He closed his eyes and opened them, looking around his mindscape. "Kurama!" he called out. "Where are you! Please, don't be gone."

" **Over here,"** called out a rasping and hollow voice.

Naruto looked around and saw a thin, red haze trying to take form. It could barely stay together. "What happened to you?"

" **Your parents tried to extract me. They took everything. I'm barely hanging on."**

Naruto stepped forward and put his hand in the cloud, funneling chakra into it. "Take whatever you need. I'm just not sure what I'd do without you."

" **You'd be dead. I resisted their extraction as best I could, but the only thing left now is my consciousness and what little chakra comes with that."**

"How did they not take your mind?"

" **It's unprecedented for a Bijuu to want to stay inside their host. My guess is that they didn't expect anything to cling to you."**

"Will you be alright?"

" **It will take a long time to recover, but with your help, yes, I'll be fine. We'll need to work on the seal though. When I start to regenerate, it'll kill you if we don't put a new one on you."**

"Then we need to get to Orochimaru. Oh shit. Victor."

" **Don't panic, Kit. We'll figure it out. For now, let's figure out where we are."**

Naruto nodded, returning to the real world. He gathered his strength and stood up, the tile floor freezing to his feet. He made his way to the only door, opening it to see a flight of stairs. He ascended, finding himself in a small cabin. He was alert, listening for any presence.

Orochimaru came around a corner, stopping at the sight of Naruto. He ran forward and grabbed the boy in a hug. "You're alive. I thought they had killed you, that I was too late. I had too go back for you when I felt the seal unraveling. I grabbed your body, but I thought you were dead."

"They did extract Kurama, mostly. But how did you know?"

"Me and Jiraiya were in charge of monitoring the seal and it's key. I knew as soon as they started."

"And what about Victor? Where is he?"

Orochimaru stepped back. "You're father showed up as I made my attack. I wasn't able to get Victor out. He's gone."

Naruto looked down. "Then what do we do now? We can't go back home."

"Victor did slip me something before I made my escape. A list of the Uzumaki he knew about. There's one not far from here. A woman named Karin."

* * *

 _ **Twenty**_ years had passed slowly, and Naruto stood quietly outside the main gate of a facility he couldn't see. It was impossible to see over the large walls. The gate began to open and a single man walked out.

"Why are you here?" he asked Naruto while lighting a cigar.

"I'm waiting for my uncle," Naruto said.

"Almost no one ever makes it out of here, you know that, right? No one is ever waiting for these people."

"Well I am. If he does get out, he's getting out today."

"And who is your uncle?"

"Victor Uzumaki."

The man froze. "I see. You're right. They're preparing him to be released now. The poor bastard."

They waited in silence until the gate opened again, this time allowing a woman to cart out a man in a wheelchair.

Naruto kept a hard gaze. "You look like shit, Victor," he said solemnly.

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ laid in a bed in the Land of Spring, slowly recovering as Koyuki and Naruto worked together on seals and cybernetics. Metal prosthetics had been attached to what was left of his body, though there had been many failures. He had drawn into himself and responded to little, making tests of the cybernetics difficult.

It was as he laid alone that he could feel the air change. He pushed threads of chakra into the wires and metal rods sticking out of his arm and legs. His body shivered as he moved his new fingers.

A woman walked out of the shadows and looked down at him with a grin on her face. "I finally found you.

Something about her, about her tone, made him react. Something came to life. "So you have. I'm sorry, who are you?" he asked. His memory failed him. Flashes of surgeries ran through his mind, the things they had done to him. His eyebrows lifted and he had a thin, confused smile.

She laughed. "What, you don't remember me? I guess not. I'm probably just a nobody to someone like _you_."

"I guess so."

"Kurotsuchi. My name is Kurotsuchi."

He paused, and something clicked. His smile faded. The red clothes, the Iwa headband, the name. It all came back. "Ah, so it's you."

"Get ready, cause this nobody has come back to cut the life out of you." She climbed on top of him and pulled a blade. "I'm going to enjoy _watching_ the life leave you!"

His limbs came to life. Rolling over, he knocked her to the floor and put himself on top of her. His knees pinned her arms to the floor as he wrenched the blade from her hand, throwing it across the room. His metal hands locked around her throat.

"You're right. You don't mean anything to me. And yet, you spent the last twenty years waiting for the chance to kill me. And then today, somehow you found me. And now, here you are. You've come to kill me. Isn't it amazing how things work out? This was the last thing I ever expected. Oh I remember now. And it's all thanks to you. I remember everything. How I started, what drives me. All. Thanks. To you. Now, how about we celebrate with a meal?" He began to grin sadistically. "I'd love to have you for dinner."


	6. Chapter 6

**Five Years Ago**

 _ **Victor**_ stood on the edge of a field with Naruto at his side. They watched as a small girl ripped apart training dummies.

"Xael's training is going well," Victor said.

"Funneling small amounts of the Kyuubi's chakra into her before she was born caused some interesting results. She far stronger than most Jounin, but it's raw and unrefined strength. It'll take time to train her properly, especially when working with the chains."

"Leave that training to Karin for a few days. We're going to intercept a trade ship tonight."

"Any particular reason?"

"It's a slave ship," Victor snarled. "One secretly owned by Gato Shipping Company."

"I knew that would come back to bite me," Naruto replied. "Just another thing Mother and Father are responsible for. When I was a child, there was a mission to the Land of Waves. When we found out that it was more dangerous than the architect could afford, the Jounin in charge of my team forced us to abandon them. I wanted to keep going, but they weren't about to be responsible for the death of the Hokage's son."

"I remember that. It's been so long since then. Time to right all wrongs, to pay all debts in full."

* * *

" _ **So**_ you did survive," Kushina said, still too shocked to react to Naruto's attack on Minato.

"No thanks to you," Naruto said venomously. He grabbed Minato and picked him up, dropping him in a chair as he came to. "Well? Come on in. We haven't got all fucking day."

As reality set in, Kushina quickly pinned Naruto to the wall.

Naruto laughed. "Go ahead, kill me. Maybe this time you'll do a better job than when you tried to extract the Kyuubi!" Red light filled the room as thick red chakra surrounded him.

"How?" Kushina tried to ask.

"When I said enough, I did not just mean for him!" Victor shouted.

"He started this fight, I can finish it."

"Do it," Naruto said, goading her on. "Spare the rod, spoil the child. I'm prepared for it. You left a huge ass burn mark on my belly, I just had to return the favor. Finish the job this time! Stop half-assing everything you do! Whatever punishment you have for me is worth it now that I've left a mark worth leaving! Do it. Show everyone, show my sister, the monster you are."

She glared at him before growling and stepping back.

"Can we all relax and take a breather?" Victor asked. "Look. I know not all of us have been on the best of terms in the past, but let's be honest. Most of that was your own faults."

"How do you have the Kyuubi too?" Kimiko interrupted.

Victor sighed and began rubbing his temples. "I swear to all that is holy, if I die of a brain aneurysm _now_ , I will haunt each and every fucking one of you. Go ahead, Naruto, answer her."

Naruto nodded. "Mother dearest wasn't exactly one of his favorite hosts. In fear of being nailed to a rock again, he resisted being extracted. Part of him was left behind and his mind was split. You have part of him, and so do I. It took a long time for him to regenerate, but eventually he did. That's how."

Victor nodded. "Good, yes, explanations. Any other questions? Or can I get back to my speech? I spent thirty years planning this bullshit."

"I do have one," Gaara said. "Why now? You were released ten years ago. Why only return now?"

"Believe it or not, my accounts were frozen or emptied when I was released." He paused, stood, and began undressing. As he got down to only his shorts, it showed the connections between his cybernetic limbs and his body, where wires were visible beneath the skin. "Took a while to get used to what was taken from me. The daily maintenance, the fear a random lightning bolt will strike me during a thunderstorm. You know? Shit like that.

"Now then," Victor continued, "I think it's important to lay all of our cards on the table. This time, I did actually kill the last Tsuchikage. Ten years ago, when she disappeared, and while I was being, rebuilt, shall we say? She hunted me down after I served my sentence and tried to kill me. So I killed her."

The atmosphere of the room tensed.

"A, you tried to kill me during the war. I can't blame you, but given how many of your men I ripped apart, I imagine you're itching for a chance at my throat? But of all the people who want to kill me, who's first in line? Minato was the first to act upon it, but it was you, Kushina, who also had hatred in her eyes. But it was worse. Cold and controlled. A calculating hatred. Why? Was it because of the crime I was accused of thirty years ago? Me being a better teacher to your son, him preferring me? Was it that I could carry on the legacy you wanted to abandon? Or was it that you missed out on five months where I had the chance to save another of your children from your betrayal? You know what, I think I know the reason. Shall I share it with the group"

"Shut up!" Kushina shouted. "I should have killed you years ago, along with the so called _legacy_ of a dying clan!"

Victor grinned smugly. "Do you still want me dead?" He pulled a book from his desk.

"Don't do it Victor," Naruto said. "She'll just burn it."

"It's a copy. I want to see how far she goes. You want to kill me so badly, Kushina? Here. A book of all the old Uzumaki laws. In it, I'm sure you'll find some way to nail me to the wall. Force a fight in a way where I can't hide. And trust me, that book is going to be the only way you have the chance to kill me." As Kushina reached out to take it, he pulled it back. "My sister, I am begging you to not do this. I do want us to be a family again. I have this whole time." He handed her the book. "As for the rest of you, you're only here because of the entertainment value. What better audience for what's to come than the leaders of the world. There are rooms for you if you want them. Otherwise, enjoy the party."

"Wait, that's it?" A asked.

"You came here for a party, you met the host, and you got a bit more. Either enjoy the party some more, or don't. That's your choice. You can go now. Naruto, when's the family supposed to arrive?"

"They'll be here in a couple hours."

"You can go now," Victor said venomously as he looked up and saw the Kage still sitting or standing there.

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ walked out through the main gate, moving quickly. He had a destination in mind, but it was ripped away as someone grabbed him and slammed him into a wall.

"You said that you were Naruto, you bastard!" Hinata all but yelled at him.

Naruto smirked and pushed his hood away to reveal his face. "But it is me, Hinata. It was me in the bakery five months ago. Wearing my uncle's face under a Henge made business easy these past few months."

She let him go and backed up, crying. "It's been so long."

"Yes it has. Tell me, can you free yourself from your chains? Can you kill them all?"

His words sent a cold chill through her body, "I-I don't know."

"Join me, Hinata. Serve me, and you can not only survive what is to come but be at my side. You can shed this pathetic skin, the shackles that this place has on you. Just like I did, you can slaughter the people who decided the direction your life should take. I'm going to kill them all. The question is, are you one of them? Is your will still so easily broken? I'll come to you for your answer when the time comes. Until then, I have places to be." He turned and left her to the night.

* * *

 _ **Kaori**_ moved slowly through the night, ducking into an alleyway, careful to not be seen as she removed her ANBU mask. She leaned against a wall and let out a sigh. Every ANBU and Jounin was on alert with the return of Victor, the thought of it put a heavy weight on her mind and a dark feeling in her stomach.

"I always hated those masks," a man said.

She turned to see Victor standing a few feet away. It didn't surprise her that she hadn't sensed him, even if she was a sensory type shinobi. She wasn't afraid. If he wanted her dead, there would be nothing she could do about it.

"They hid your beautiful face. That, and they itched like a motherfucker," Victor continued.

"So you're hear to flatter me?" Kaori asked.

"To say hello. I've missed you. You really do still look beautiful." He walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her in a light hug. "I thought I would never see you again."

"And what is it you think is going to happen now?" she asked, her arms staying at her sides.

"Nothing. Not a fucking thing. But I have to know something. Your son. The timing works, and I have to know-"

She cut him off. "He isn't yours. Right after you left-"

"Thank you," he said, cutting her off now. "Thank you, and whatever deities listen."

"You're happy?" she asked, surprised.

"More than you could know. I'm so sorry for everything. I just needed to know that I hadn't abandoned someone else. I love you. I'm sorry. For everything. For this." His arms tightened around her. "Your loyalty lies with Konoha. You turned me in when I returned from Iwa. You betrayed me. And you would do it again."

She choked in his arms, her bones popping and cracking as his grip began to crush her.

"Good night," he whispered.

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ walked through Konoha, happy to use his own name as he went about his business. Though, he was doing it to antagonize Kushina and Minato. Every step he took, he was waiting for them to make their move.

He made his way towards Kimiko's home, hoping to talk to her now that the tensions of the night before might have eased. He stepped up to the door and knocked. When the door finally opened, Kimiko looked at him with tired eyes.

"Last night, I told you that you weren't the only reason I came back. Even if it ruins all of my other plans, I want to tell you the other reason. I told you that I wouldn't lie to you. To prove it, I want to tell you everything."

She stared at him for a minute before stepping aside and letting him in. He moved slowly, calmly, into the living room where she guided him and sat down with him.

"Let's hear it," she said.

He sighed and thought about where to begin. "I came back to torment Kushina and Minato, and, should it come to it, kill them. I don't want to. As a matter of fact, I was hoping we could still be a family. But after last night, I don't know how we could. I've spent five months preparing in case they still hated me, so I could be safe. Now, all I want is you and Naruto, to be with you both and forget my sorrow. I'm so broken because of what they did to me."

Victor pulled a black skull mask from his coat and put it on his face. "My name is Death, and the end is here," he said.

"That was you?" she asked. She pulled a gun and aimed at his head.

He put the mask down and leaned his head back. "Will you be the death of me, of all people? Yes, that was me. Did you know I left a half-eaten person there? The Twenty-Year Prison is a place you put someone in to make them endure hell. It breaks your will. Only the desire for their love or my vengeance kept me going. But the things they did to me..." His voice cracked and tears ran down his face.

She lowered her gun slightly.

"They locked me in a sealed room and pumped in just enough air to make me feel like I was suffocating for hours on end. They burned me alive, tied me down while parasites and rats ate me alive, put hooks on my bones and ripped them out. Even then, you can't imagine the things they can put you through in twenty years. In the last year, they become the most brutal, and they stop giving you rations. You can only steal food from the others so many times before they decide to kill you. And then, I adapted. I learned the only way to survive like that. The weakest ones would be spared suffering, by feeding me."

"You survived by eating the other prisoners," she said in realization, sounding solemn

"No matter who I killed, no one wanted to be on the bad side of whoever was eating people. There's something bad inside me, broken beyond fixing. I came back to save you, so that you could save me."

"And to kill my parents," Kimiko said grimly.

Victor chuckled through his tears. "Can you blame me? What they did to me, what they deprived me of? Feel free to tell them. I'm just glad you know the truth. You know what I'm going to do, the things I've done. And I'm going to do even more soon. That's more than your parents will ever give you. I of all people can promise you that. So now, all I have to know is, what will you do?"

She stared at him. "I'm just a pawn on the shogi-board, aren't I?"

"To them, yes. To me, you're the king. Or one of the Gold Generals perhaps. You and Naruto are the most important things to me. I'm the pawn. If it comes down to it, I'll sacrifice myself to keep you two safe. Ultimately, I want you to join me, but that's up to you."

"Get out," Kimiko said.

Victor nodded. He stood and went to the door.

"I'll think about it," she said. "I don't know what I'll do, or what to do, yet. But I'll think about it." She was uncertain, and it was obvious. All the things she had learned over the past few months left her shaken.

"I can accept that," Victor said as he left.

* * *

 _ **Sasuke**_ moved quietly through the streets, the night air isolating him. He could hear music off in the distance.

"Hello there, Sasuke. Long time, no see."

He turned to see Naruto standing there. He had heard about his return, but the difference thirty years made was easily visible.

"So you _are_ back," Sasuke said. "I don't get why the Hokage wants the ANBU to be on guard for you. Not like the Kyuubi, let alone only half of it, can challenge the Sharingan."

"I hear you're an ANBU commander now. Doesn't mean I haven't had enough of your pathetic arrogance. It's a lot less amusing than it was when I left. And considering how much it annoyed me then, that should tell you everything."

Sasuke gave a small grunt of annoyance and pulled a sword, putting it against Naruto's throat. Naruto didn't flinch or move away, but his eyes hardened into a glare.

He raised a hand and snapped his fingers. As he did, a small girl walked out of the shadows with a pair of swords strapped to her back. Her eyes were purple and her hair was gold like Naruto's, but with an unusual style; being short and spiky on the right side but longer and straight on the left side.

"Introductions are in order. This is Xael, my daughter. Now then, bring me his right arm, darling," Naruto said.

The girl pulled the swords and smiled. "Yes, Papa!" She dashed forward, leaving Sasuke barely enough time to dodge.

Sasuke backed up, pulled a gun, and pointed it at her.

"Papa, he's pointing his gun at me. Can I cut his head off?" Xael asked.

"Patience, my little love. In time, perhaps. Now then, Sasuke. I have business with you, if you'd listen. I'd like to either grant you a vengeance that has eluded you, or a swift death. How would you like to kill your brother, and know the true reason he killed your family? I will give you answers, and serve him up to you on a silver plater. But in return, you must pledge fealty to my uncle and me. You must serve our plans. The last Uchiha must bow to the Uzumaki."

"An Uchiha, as a servant? Are you insane?" Sasuke demanded, though Naruto could see the desire for what he promised.

"Who's more insane? A man who makes his own way, or someone like you, who serves people who betray him?" He smirked. "Take that as you will. Look, consider my offer. I do have other places to be. I've got the rest of our graduating class to convince. How are Choji and Kiba these days? You know what, I'll just ask them. Let's go, Xael."

And with that, they turned and left.

* * *

 _ **He**_ sat in a clearing, playing softly on a flute. The tune cut off sharply. "You can only kill me with that book, Kushina. Unless my sister has come to have a picnic?"

Kushina walked into the clearing, flanked by half of a dozen shinobi. "You think I can't see the things you've done? He has his suspicions, but Minato says there isn't enough evidence. But I see it. People don't sleep well anymore. More people going to their doctors about nightmares. I've never liked being someone else's puppet, but I can feel you pulling my strings, you behind it all. There is a darkness infesting the village. The attacks over the months, this sickness, you've been wreaking anarchy and all that it brings."

Victor stood up. "You've always been happy to be the puppet. You want me to be this monster you hate? You want me to be the one trying to burn you alive? I see fire in all your eyes. The fire of hope and determination. I want to extinguish it. You want to sacrifice them for your schemes, Kushina? I'll slaughter them all!"

He blinked out of existence, reappearing behind them. A line of craters appeared, stopping at Victor as everything around them caught up with his speed. He kicked one of the ANBU in the leg, breaking it sideways. Black chains emerged from his back, slamming into three of the ANBU, scattering them.

"I am going to tear down everything you've built!" Victor shouted. He grabbed on of them by the hair, bludgeoning them with his hand. As the ANBU dropped to the ground, the chains ensnared Kushina and her men. Each of the ANBU was lifted up to watch what he would do next. "These pathetic children you mislead, you will watch them bleed. They were strong, but you're about to learn that strength does not bring victory. Your sins are what they'll pay for. It will be a catastrophe, a terrible work of art!" He pulled a sword, aiming it a Kushina's head. He slammed it down, pushing the blade into the ground next to her.

"I'm not the monster here, dear sister. I'm not the one trying to kill someone who has already payed for their mistakes hundreds of times over! All I wanted was to come back and have my family! You're the one stopping that. You're the one that wants so badly for me to die. You want me dead so bad? Use the book then. But please don't. Just let me have my family. I'm so tired."

He vanished once again, taking form on a ridge, looking down at the clearing down below.

"Why let them live?" Naruto asked, watching them.

"This is the plan. One of many, at the very least. Plant seeds of doubt. Konoha completely united, it's a terrifying thing. I'll divide them with doubt and watch this hole in the world burn."

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ walked through the streets with a bag in his hand. He smiled, hoping today would be the day. He had done the same for the past week, going about Konoha during the day, waiting. He could tell that ANBU were almost constantly watching him, but he was unbothered by them.

And then he felt it. The pure hatred. He turned and saw Kushina standing behind him.

"Hey there, sis. How've you been?" Victor asked jovially. He noticed that she had brought her own audience, Sasuke Uchiha, his wife, Minato, Kimiko, even some of the other clan leaders, and the other Kage.

"Cut the shit, Victor," Kushina shot back. "I'm here to challenge you."

Victor smirked. "Challenge me? Whatever could you mean? I have no interest in fighting you."

"To an Uzumaki Duel," she said.

He became serious. "So you did read the book. Good. Are you sure?"

"A battle where the loser's life is forfeit. Yes, I'm sure. You don't have to accept, but something tells me that your honor and pride as an Uzumaki won't let you refuse."

Victor laughed. "You're right. Luckily, I've already drawn up the seal." He sat his bag down and pulled a slip of paper, a sealing tag, from it. He cut open his palm and placed the seal over the blood.

"A seal?" Kushina asked. "What seal."

He stopped. "You saw, 'deathmatch' and jumped on it like a bitch in heat, didn't you. Fuck, you didn't even read the rules. Yes. Open your palm with a blade and clasp hands with me. If you're serious about this, you do as I've said."

She paused and then steeled herself against what was to come. She pulled a knife and cut open her palm, clasping hands with him.

"Repeat after me, but use your own name. Your _real_ name," Victor said. "I, Victor Uzumaki, submit to the laws of our people for this duel."

Kushina repeated his words, reluctantly addressing herself as an Uzumaki. As she did, the seal glowed and suddenly branded them both with it's mark. "So, where are we fighting? You get to decide the form the contest takes, right?"

Victor glared at her. "So you did read some of it. Yes. You challenged me, so I dictate the rules, and the form this contest will take. But, it won't be a fight. It'll be a game I've played hundreds of times."

He reached down and pulled a six chamber revolver from his bag. "The name of the game, is Russian Roulette. And we'll be playing in the center of the village."


	7. Chapter 7

**[A/N] I would like to, once again thank Isafish, Nyabi, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter and the last.**

 **NaruHina: I wasn't aware of her being a character before now, so no, she was just an OC. As for everything else, you know what, fuck it. Just for shits and giggles, I will** **guarantee** **you right now that Hinata and Sasuke will not be** **married** **by the end of this story.**

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ unsealed a table and a pair of chairs from a scroll. He sat down and put the revolver on the table, waiting for Kushina to be seated as well.

"You honestly expect me to play this fucking game of chance?" she demanded.

"Yes," Victor shot back. "Either you play or the seal will kill you. It's very simple. Whichever one of us walks away alive wins. Now sit down"

She finally did, sitting down with a grim expression.

"Now, I think we should have a referee, don't you? Naruto, could you serve in that capacity?"

"Of course I could," Naruto said as walked up to the table. Next to him were Xael and a woman with red eyes, glasses, and red hair in the same style as Xael's. "More introductions," he said. "My wife, Karin Uzumki, and my daughter, Xael Uzumaki." He glanced at Hinata as he said this, seeing her eyes widen slightly, growing watery.

Karin gave a small bend of her neck, keeping it just within courtesy for the people in front of her. Xael curtsied, though the smirk she wore made the sincerity of it debatable.

Xael looked at Kushina. "Please dad, can I cut her head off?" She smiled with delight.

Naruto laughed. "How many times must I tell you? In time, you might. But for now, you may not." She sulked at his answer.

"I will regulate the game," Naruto said. "Should the rules of the challenge be broken, I will step in as needed."

"We all know the rules. One bullet in the chamber," Victor said. He pulled a single bullet from his coat and loaded it into the gun, spinning the cylinder and quickly snapping it into place. "Now that that's out of the way," he said. He placed the gun to his head, pulling the trigger.

The gun clicked and Victor smiled. He put the gun back down on the table. Without hesitation, she stood and aimed the gun at Victor's head. Neither flinched as she pulled the trigger five times in rapid succession.

* * *

" _ **Have**_ you ever wondered what life would have been like if Uzushio had never been destroyed?" Naruto asked.

"Many times," Victor said. "But every time I do, I remind myself that if it had not happened, I also would never had been betrayed and my life would have been completely different. Life can't be undone, Naruto. It can't be changed. So worry about plans to rebuild our homeland. And then, one day, when everything we have to do here in Konoha is done, we will have again what was stolen."

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ began clapping as blood dripped from his forehead. "Congratulations. You cheated and still lost."

"What?" Kushina asked. "How?"

"It's called a blank. And since those can still be lethal from point blank range, I'm glad parts of my skull were ripped out. The sides of my head are still bone, but the top and a large part of my face are all metal. It's why the plastic seal didn't kill me. But you cheated...which means you lose."

The marking moved up Kushina's arm like liquid ink, suddenly forcing a scream from her as she clawed at her arm.

"You have twenty-four hours, dear sister. And then the seal will kill you. Get your affairs in order before the pain becomes too crippling for you to move. Come, Naruto. Let's go home."

Each of them disappeared in a Shunshin.

* * *

 _ **Laughter**_ filled the room, drowned in the halls by music and the partying of the young, as Victor stood in his office. He was hunched over, laughing uncontrollably while Naruto, Xael, Karin, Orochimaru, and Koyuki watched on.

"That dumb bitch made my life so much easier without even putting any risk on me!" Victor shouted. "This is perfect. Did you see the look in those people's eyes? So many of the shinobi saw how little honor she had, and how badly it fucked her over. This is going to be so much fun!"

"Sir, you have a visitor," Inari said as he entered the room.

"Oh? And who would it be? Show them in."

Inari stepped aside, allowing Minato to enter the office.

Victor grinned. "And what brings my brother-in-law to my humble abode?"

"I want you to spare Kushina," Minato said.

"Spare her? It can't be done. She knew what she agreed to. Her fate is her own fault."

"Please. I'll do anything. There has to be a way."

"Now that is what I was waiting to hear!" Victor yelled, pounding a fist on his desk. His face was wrinkled in a wicked smile. "Anything. You would do anything to save her. Endure any suffering, give any treasure, sell your own soul! Bring your parents back to life and sell them down the river without a second thought just to give her a shot! There is one way. One way to give your wife a chance. You must convince me to offer her a rematch. She will play the same game, this time fairly. But I don't want to offer her a rematch. I love my sister, but I don't want to keep playing this game with her. So the question is, what are you willing to surrender to give her that chance? Just a _chance_? How far will you go?"

Minato glared at him. "What do you want?"

Victor chuckled. "I've got the perfect seal to ensure you uphold your end. Now, as for my price."

* * *

 _ **Minato**_ sat in his office with the other Kage, Tsunade, Jiraiya, the elder toads, and Sasuke Uchiha.

"You can't do this, Minato!" Jiraiya said. "What he's asking, there's no telling what he'll do with it."

"I don't have a choice. It's either this or let Kushina die. You've seen the seal, Jiraiya. We call ourselves sealing masters, but he's been learning from the original notes of the Uzumaki. He helped design the Hiraishin seals _and_ helped me create the Rasengan. There is no way to circumvent the seal and no way that she will survive it. It's already worked it's way up her arm, turning the cells cancerous but keeping them from dividing just yet. In eighteen hours, it will spread to her brain and force her insides to replicate until her skin and bones can't contain it. So I'm giving him what he wants. All I ask now, is that when he goes to claim it, you defend the village. I also humbly request the help of the other Kage. Please. I beg you. Kill me if you have to when the time comes, but please stop him. I can't make you help, but please consider it. Now then, if you'll all excuse me, I have a council to disband."

* * *

 _ **He**_ moved through the concrete halls, his attention on a row of prison cells ahead. Their doors were open, not something that surprised him. Most prisoners could come and go from the cells as they pleased, if the others left them capable of moving. He walked to one, greeted by a disgusting sight and foul smell.

A blonde man was laying on the ground. His clothes were ripped, his feet cut off, and he was covered in what Victor new were bodily fluids.

"Hello Deidara," he said. He grabbed Deidara's hand and looked at the palm. "Those disgusting fuckers usually start cutting off parts at the hands, not the feet. I suppose they did find a use for your hands though." There was little to no reaction from the aged former Akatsuki member. "I know what you've been through. You've seen my legs and arms. But I'm the one that put you in here. I hope you hold no ill will towards me. You wanted to kill my nephew and niece. And for that, I put you, and what little of the Akatsuki I left alive, in the Twenty-Year Prison. But it's amazing, the rules you can circumvent when you own the place, and everyone who works here remembers what you did to survive it. How would you like to leave this place?"

At the mention of release, of salvation, Deidara's eyes focused and looked up at Victor. "Yes, please," was all he managed.

"Good. Now let's go find the Uchiha. I'm going to need his eyes."

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ walked slowly through the hospital until he came to the room he wanted. His knuckles rapped against the door and he entered to see Kushina laying in a bed with Kimiko standing at her side.

"What the hell are you doing here, you bastard?" Kushina asked.

He took on a sorry expression, looking meager and apologetic. "I came to talk. Nothing more."

Kimiko walked over and stood close. "I'm not sure you coming here is a good idea. She puts on a strong face, but that seal has her in too much pain to move."

"I know. And that's why I'm here. I want to be worthy of your love, and hers, if she will give it to me. I know I can't change her fate, but I want to give my sister the chance to meet it instead. After what she tried to do today, I hope it shows why I fear for you, but I told you before, I don't want her dead. Will you please let me have the chance to still have my sister's love?"

Kimiko was quiet before nodding and stepping aside. He moved closer, looking at Kushina with the same sorrowful expression.

"I am sorry it came to this, sister. I really was hoping that we could make amends. But even after thirty years, all the suffering I endured, I came back to find my family wanted me dead. You chose this, but I'm still sorry. Nothing will ever change how much I still love you, not even your hatred for me. To show that, I'm here to offer you another chance." He walked up to her and took her hand, though the flesh looked dead. "I, Victor Uzumaki, offer a rematch to my challenger."

The seal immediately regressed, leaving her skin smooth and clean. He knelt down, placing his forehead to her hand.

"One of us can't live while the other does as well. Those are the rules of the game. But I don't want you to die. This rematch is the most I can offer you. All I wanted was your love, the love of my family, and our legacy. It's all I've wanted." He began to sob. "But all the things I've survived to get here; I don't want to die. I don't want to die. So you're going to have to. I just want you to not hate me in the end."

"Get the fuck off your knees and away from me you bastard," Kushina said venomously.

He looked up at her, his eyes red and his face stained with tears. "What?"

"I'll take your rematch, and I'll play your sick game, but I will still hate you even after you die. Now get the fuck out of here."

"Why? I did nothing wrong, so why do you hate me so much? This is your cruel answer?" Victor closed his eyes and stood up, nodding. "Same game, same place, same time. I'm sorry I wasn't able to change your heart. I love you, my sister." He turned and walked to Kimiko.

"I understand why you love them, but why do you want to stay with them? Are they the ones who will sacrifice themselves for you with no fear?" He left the room without another word, feeling Kushina glaring at him. But as he closed the door behind him, his face was split in a cruel grin.

* * *

 ** _The_** night air bit at Kushina. Her eyes snapped open at the feeling. She looked at the window, now open to the darkness. It seemed watery, like ink flowing through the air.

A hand reached from the dark, grabbing the window frame. Victor pulled himself inside, his bare feet landing softly on the tile floor.

"What are you doing here?" she snarled, sitting up in her bed. "I already agreed to play your game."

He stood tall, shadows wrapping around his body as dark robes. "I came to show you something. Put aside your hate for one night. No one is watching and I have no other plans. Just please, walk with me. At least join me with a painted smile." He held a hand out for her.

She glared at him, slowly standing. "What do you want to show me? The sooner I see it, the sooner you leave, right?"

He nodded, a small smile stretching his lips. His arm swept out towards the window. The wall faded and the darkness was burned away. Kushina stood at his side as the hospital disappeared.

"This is a dream, isn't it," she said, standing above the clouds.

"Yes. A dream I crafted, just like your nightmares over the years." He could feel her eyes boring into him. "All that time you said I was insane, I had just made you a part of my game." An Island formed below them. The Island of Uzushio. "When we first came to Konoha, I tried to make you afraid of the place and it's people, make you hate them. You saw it as hating your saviors for no real reason, trying to overcome it. When I realized it, I tried playing on your guilt for killing our mother and leaving our home to burn. I never realized that it was just too late. You were right. I've been playing on people's fears, infesting their nightmares to divide them."

Victor sat down,looking down longingly.

"I knew it. What do you have planned? Why come back and do all this?"

"For Kimiko. While you were in that coma, I passed on what secrets I could. And if I die, Naruto will continue. I trained her how to use the chains. She is strong. Stronger than either of us ever were, and only Naruto can rival her power. She can't be contained by your lies anymore. Even if I die, I'll make sure she is never bound or chained. Even if I wanted to, there is nothing that either of us could do to stop it now. Now hush. Enjoy the moment. This is the last time I'll be in your dreams, and it should be a happy dream."

* * *

 _ **A**_ crowd gathered much more than before as Victor once again set up the table and chairs and laid the gun down. They watched as Kushina sat across from him, ready to take this rematch that would determine her fate.

Naruto and his family were standing to the side, again acting as mediators.

"Are you ready to play, little sister?" Victor asked.

"Yes. Let's get this over with."

He nodded and showed off the bullet he was loading into the gun; that, this time, it was not a blank. He spun the cylinder and snapped it into place. Without hesitation, he pushed the gun to his head and pulled the trigger, sighing in relief as the gun clicked.

Once again, he put the gun down and pushed it to Kushina. This time, he saw hesitation in her eyes.

"Have you ever really played this game before?" he asked. She shook her head 'no'. "Give me your hand," he said gently, softly grabbing her hand and pulling it to him. He placed the gun in her hand. "Take a deep breath. Say a prayer to yourself, if you hold any belief. Take the gun, and count to three."

She slowly moved the gun to her head, placing the barrel to her skin. She took a breath.

"Close your eyes. Sometimes it helps," Victor said.

Kushina paused, her breathing hitched. She thought about what he had said, how many times he had played this game. That he was still sitting here. "You've never lost, have you."

Victor closed his eyes. "No. I haven't."

She nodded, closing her own eyes. She began to count, and, as she reached three, pulled the trigger.


	8. Chapter 8

**[A/N] Once more, I thank Isafish, Nyabi, and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter and the last.**

 **My post for chapter seven was recent, but, I figure, it's the holidays. SO I'll go ahead and post this and get the final chapter out to you all soon as well. I hope you all enjoy, and I know that what is to come...let's just say it might not be everything you expect.**

* * *

 ** _There_ **was silence as the crowd watched Kushina lower the gun. Her breathing was ragged as it slipped past her trembling mouth..

Victor took the gun from her. "Congratulations. You survived your first shot. My turn."

He put the gun to his head and paused. "Do you know why I can play this game? I had a friend in the prison. He stole drugs, from where, I don't know. He was going to end his life with an overdose and offered some to me. I considered it, but I refused. I don't want to go quiet. I don't want to trail off. I want a period at the end of my life sentence, not an ellipsis. Hell, an exclamation mark!" He pulled the trigger, only hearing a click.

He passed the gun to Kushina, his eyes following her trembling hands. She put the gun against her head once more, closed her eyes, and pulled the trigger.

There were screams as her body fell out of the chair. Minato flinched, the color draining from his face as he looked away. Kimiko took a step toward her mother. She stopped as Victor had already caught the body before it hit the ground. He cradled her head in his hands, ignoring the warm blood running between his fingers. o run to her mother, but Victor had already caught her head in his hands before she landed.

While his eyes stayed dry, he could hear Kimiko start to cry. He held his sister close, kissing her forehead. Blood trailing down her face stuck to his lips. "I am so sorry it came to this," he whispered. "You couldn't hear a lie. I have no reason to lie. I truly am sorry, my sister. I loved you." He quietly set her body down. As he stood up again, he looked at Minato with a small nod.

Minato stepped forward and picked up his wife. His eyes darted between her and Victor. "I am stepping down as Hokage." His words sent a mixture of stunned silence and shocked whispers through the crowd. What he said next caused shouts of disapproval. "I'm naming Victor Uzumaki as my successor."

"What?" Victor asked in a surprised tone. "You can't be serious."

"You were right. We treated you like shit."

Victor gave a small and dry chuckle. "Now isn't this irony? Rule the village that fucked me over? The Hokage admitting he was wrong? What did you fuckers put in my food? I accept."

"Dad, what are you doing?" Kimiko asked.

"What I have to," Minato replied.

"Sensei, you can't do this," Kakashi interjected.

"Let the big boys talk, Kakashi," Victor said. "My sister just killed herself, so I'm a little on edge. Who knows how I might lash out in my grief."

"I am doing this, Kakashi. As of this moment, all of the shinobi in the village take orders from Victor."

"The council won't stand for this," Jiraiya said.

"I disbanded the council," Minato said, silencing the people. "They don't have to stand for this."

"Oh? Has the Hokage perhaps sparked civil war? Someone find me some popcorn," Victor sneered with a twisted grin.

Jiraiya closed his eyes and sighed. Victor could see the reluctance and the shame on his face. "As of this moment, the Hokage- no, Minato Namikaze has betrayed us. He is no longer Hokage. He is a traitor and his decision does not stand."

"Minato, I believe they are staging a coup," Victor said curiously. _'I expected it, but not so quickly.'_

"Yes. It's a shame you can't see things my way, Jiraiya. You have until tomorrow to put these foolish thoughts away and recognize Victor as your leader."

Minato turned to walk away. Victor watched him go, already calculating how the game might have changed when he wasn't looking. The pieces were rearranged. He considered the moves his opponent may have made. Now it was time to make his.

"You heard the man. You have till tomorrow. Come on Naruto," Victor said. "Cry havoc, my friends! And let slip the dogs of war!"

He followed after Minato with his family in tow.

* * *

 _ **"Kimiko** _want's to see you," Inari said.

"Tell her to wait," Victor replied. "I am discussing things with her father." He looked down at Kushina's body laying on his desk and Minato across from him. The towels her body rested on were stained crimson.

"Yes sir."

As Inari left and the two sat alone, Victor clapped. "What a wonderful performance. What did you think of my shock?" He feigned surprise. "What? Me, Hokage? You can't be serious?" His face wrinkled in laughter.

"Are you satisfied then? My wife is dead and I still have to give you the keys to the city."

"That was the agreement we made. She had a fifty-fifty chance, which was better than what she had when she cheated. And no one can know about the deal we made, or I let Orochimaru bring her back and make her destroy the village. But you see, that's the problem. I think you told someone. Jiraiya seemed ready, like it was a plan."

"It wasn't, I swear!"

"It's alright, Minato. I understand. You can't stop me, you even have to help me, but to have someone else mount a resistance? That was a smart play, though it could have been executed better. He's a little clumsy in his old age. I'll tell you what. I'll pretend I didn't notice. Kushina can stay dead, and I won't unleash the horrors of the Twenty-Year Prison."

Minato seemed to relax for a moment, his shoulders slumping. "So what will you do now?"

"Now? Well, your teacher is probably organizing his forces with that little bit of time you gave him. Again, a smart move. But, as long as Kimiko doesn't know, I won't make you fight your wife. So, tomorrow, we make a siege on this village and take control. Remember your role to play. The one who recognizes his wrongs and wants to atone to his brother-in-law. Deviate from that and I'll make you suffer more than you can imagine."

"I get it. I'll play my part."

"Good. Now go. Let's see what my niece wants."

Minato stood. "For the record, I hope you die tomorrow."

"The feeling is _not_ mutual. Remember that I wanted to have my family back. Now leave. Get ready for tomorrow. Get anyone who supports this and get them ready as well. And keep my niece on our side. If she turns against us, I hold you directly responsible, and you will watch as your wife begs for any other torture than to kill you and destroy this village. And I will set loose the monsters this world truly fears from the Prison. Last thing I want to do is fight Kimiko. She's why I do this. Which actually reminds me of something. Come here and lift up your sleeve."

Minato did as he was told, coming to stand at the desk. Victor reached forward, grabbing Minato's right forearm. His eyes scanned over the skin until he placed his palm against it. Flesh began to burn under his touch, filling the room with an acrid smell.

Victor's grip tightened as Minato tried to pull away. "Hold still," he commanded. "I can't have Kimiko using the Hiraishin to find you too quickly tomorrow."

Minato grit his teeth, resisting the urge to scream until he was let go. Time passed as he stood there, gripping his arm. "You're a heartless bastard," he said when he had finally regained his composure. He pulled the sleeve down, covering the wound.

"You're the same," Victor said as he lit incense. "You are exactly the same. Or have you forgotten that true nature, hiding behind the virtue you pretend to have? Or did you never notice that nature coming out to play when you blindly sought honor?"

Minato looked away as he opened the door, seeing Kimiko there. No music came in from outside, the rest of the mansion filled only with quiet. "You two should talk," he said, stepping around her.

She walked inside, looking between her father and Victor until the door was closed behind her. Her eyes locked on her mother's body.

"Her body will be dealt with in the Konoha shinobi fashion," Victor said. "That's how she would want it. But I'm going to deal with the seals on her body. Particularly this one." He lifted Kushina's arm to show a swirl symbol on her wrist. "It used to be part of a matching set, but I had to move mine to my heart when they started taking things from me. They were seals given to us by our father, so that we could always find each other if we needed to. I don't think she's used hers in a long time. And it's far too complex for her to have removed it. But I don't think she wants to be buried with a symbol of the Uzumaki. She wanted to forget them."

"I just can't believe she's gone," Kimiko said. "And she died hating you, even with the offers of peace you tried to make."

"We can't change that. Even if we want to."

"We changed my father, at least. His announcement. It's a little odd that he changed his mind so suddenly, but I guess after seeing mom die like that..." She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she held back more tears. "I'm happy he wants to show some kind of remorse. But I wanted to say that I'll stand with you. Tomorrow, when you and him have to stand against everyone else, I'll be beside you."

"You have no idea how much that means to me. Minato is going to rally those loyal to him, but once I get done with Kushina's body, Naruto, Karin, Xael, and I are going to dine in the meeting hall downstairs. With what's happened, I've sent the guests away for the night."

She nodded. "I'd like that."

"Good. Head downstairs. Inari will show you the way. I'll be down in a moment."

Kimiko gave a small smile and nodded, leaving him to the quiet.

"Alone," Victor said. His hand caressed her cheek. "Completely alone. Dear sister, I don't remember the last time I was happy to be alone." He worked on the seal on her arm, unraveling and dismantling it. "Now, all that's left, is to break the final chains that bind me. Tomorrow, your village will fall, the inheritors of this false home will see that the Uzumaki can not be bound, and Uzushio will rise again. You knew it would come to this. You knew my plan. Even before I was imprisoned, I planned on doing this and you knew."

His mind wandered to its darkest memories. The times when his soul was broken.

* * *

 ** _Victor_** stood in his office, constantly running over numbers. He slammed papers now with a sigh. "So. Many. FUCKING NUMBERS!" Every day he calculated, testing seals as he tried to develop the ones he needed and re-purpose the ones he had.

He turned to see Kushina storming in.

"Kushina, good. Tell Minato I'm close to a breakthrough with his Hiraishin concept," he said dismissively over his shoulder.

She turned him around, punching him in the face. As he leaned against the desk, cradling his jaw, he spat blood. "I probably did something to deserve that, right? The question is; What?"

"You've been messing around with the barrier again! What the hell was that seal you spliced in?"

"Took a lot of work to be put in charge of the barrier team. And even longer to figure out how to make what I needed. Soon enough, I'll have figured out how to bring this village to it's knees."

"You need to stop this, Victor! This is our home now."

He laughed. "Listen to yourself. Ever since then, your mind has been too fucked up to see clearly. Ever since you killed our brother! You murdered our mother! Ever since dad-"

"Shut up! This isn't about them! This is home, and none of your insanity is going to change that for as long as I have anything to say about it?"

"Is that a threat, sis?" He glared at her. "Be careful. There are some words that can't be taken back. I'll get our home back, even if it kills me."

"It just might. Stop doing this. I'm through warning you."

* * *

 ** _He_** came back to himself. "I should have seen it that day. I didn't stop, and that's why you hired someone to frame me, to send me away. That's right. I always knew why. I understand. And I forgive you. But this must end in retribution, in blood. It's why I had to make you the villain in your daughter's eyes. I had to make her fear you. Blood for blood. Suffering for suffering. And when your husband dies at the hands of his own people tomorrow, I will personally ensure that you both spend the rest of your lives in the hell you put me in."

As the seal was undone, he smiled and disappeared in a burst of darkness. He re-materialized with his hand on Kimiko's shoulder, standing outside the dining hall. "I don't think you've had the chance to really meet the others just yet," he said. He opened the door to see his family ready to sit down and enjoy a meal together. "Finally, I can say this. Kimiko Namikaze, w-"

"No," Kimiko interrupted.

Victor looked puzzled. _'Is she saying what I think she's saying?'_

"Not Namikaze," she said resolutely. "Kimiko Uzumaki."

 ** _He_ **smiled. "Very well. Kimiko Uzumaki, welcome to the family!"

* * *

 _ **Kakashi** _entered the empty hall adorned in his ANBU gear. His footsteps were silent, his eyes darting around.

"I expected someone to be sent for my head, but do they expect so little from me that they only sent you?" Victor stood above Kakashi, sitting on the edge of a balcony.

"I chose to come here and kill you. No one had to give the order."

"Well, in that case, no one will be looking for your body. Out of all seals on my body, this one is my favorite."

Victor ripped off his necklace, sealing arrays bringing it to life. It squirmed like an insect in his hand, jumping down to the haunting wooden statue. Twisted wood bent and broke, it's form turning in on itself. As it settled, legs stretched out, fire glowing from deep within its wide maw.

He stood up, walking away with a careless wave. "Sentinel, kill."

* * *

 ** _Victor_ **stood at the gates of Konoha with his family and faithful at his back. Minato's loyalists had already been given orders for where to take positions in the village. The sky above was dark and ready to break with thunder and rain.

"Today, we take Konoha for ourselves," Victor said, flourishing his arms. "Today, the world changes."


	9. The End

**[A/N] This time, I will only be thanking Isafish and SithLordNilis for beta reading this chapter. Merry Christmas, happy holidays, whatever it is you have on this day, enjoy this chapter. The final chapter of Vengeance!**

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ walked to the center of the village alone. Jiraiya and Tsunade stood in his way with an army at their backs.

"I once considered you my friends," he said, looking at them. "Please, stand down. Don't do this."

"We know you're strong," Sasuke said, stepping forward and removing his ANBU mask, "but you'll need an army to stop us all."

Victor laughed. "I don't need an army, pathetic child. This fight I can handle all on my own. But either stand up and join me, or surrender the throne. I will give you all two minutes. I will not take no for an answer, and there is nothing you can do. Come on, Sasuke, Hinata? What are your answers to Naruto's offers?"

Sasuke glared back at Hinata before turning back to Victor. "Go fuck yourself."

Victor's eyes narrowed. "Remember, once it's been said, that it can't be unspoken. Reconsider you answer, and let the next words you say be ones that won't leave you broken." There was silence for a moment. "The time to join me is ticking."

A minute passed, and then two. Victor's eye began to twitch in annoyance. "This is your final warning. Consider yourself threatened. There's nothing you can do to stop me. Time is up. Get out of my way or get ready to die. I don't need an army, but don't, for a fucking second, think I didn't bring one!"

He formed a hand sign and people flashed into existence around him. "This place took everything from me. I'm not gonna stop until everything is mine! Attack!"

Naruto charged in, intercepting Sasuke and Hinata, grabbing them by their throats. "We should talk, my old friends," he said before using the Shunshin to take them away from the main fight.

He dumped them on one of the training grounds and landed not far away. Karin and Xael appeared at his sides. "I made you both offers, very tempting offers. I appealed to your desires, offered to grant what your hearts really want. Join me. Fight for me."

Sasuke got his feet back under him. "I told you. I have my Uchiha pride. I'm not going to serve you."

"And Hinata?"

"You said I'd be by your side," Hinata said. "But I would never have been with you, would I?"

Naruto laughed. "I never said you would. Just that you would be spared and could stand beside me. But I never said you would be my blushing bride. So what? Are you both going to fight me now? An Uchiha my daughter could kill and a Hyuga that's as pathetic as she was the day we met." He laughed. "My wife and child are more than capable. My love, would you like to kill the one who thinks she could take your place?"

Karin cracked her knuckles. "I'd love to." She rushed forward and punched Hinata in the gut, sending her flying back.

"Make daddy proud," Naruto said to Xael.

She nodded and drew her swords. She rushed Sasuke, who pulled his own sword and clashed with her. She put him on the defensive as her attacks were faster than he could retaliate against. Chains shot out of her back and attempted to impale him.

He jumped back out of the way as the chains dug into the ground, scattering debris. He quickly made a series of hand signs. Lightning shot from the sky, taking the shape of a creature that roared and charged the area with enough range to kill everyone around Sasuke. Before it could strike, the lightning suddenly dispersed, along with the clouds it had come from.

Naruto stood there, his body glowing with seals and surging with electricity. He stepped up beside his daughter, chuckling. "You showed us one of yours," he said. "I've got to show you one of mine." Wind whipped around him, clouding the area with dust. He directed a massive blast of it at Sasuke, embedding him into an outcropping of rock where he was unable to move as more and more hit him one after the other.

It finally stopped when the rock cracked and fell around the Uchiha who was now breathing raggedly.

"How about that. Still alive and kicking. You know the great thing? I lied. You would never have avenged your clan. You would have died a worthless shit no mater what you chose. Victor killed your brother. The fucking bastard begged for you to be the one that killed him. But he died like a dog!"

Sasuke screamed and ran at Naruto with electricity sparking around his arm. Chains shot from the ground, knocking the air from Sasuke as he ran into them. They wrapped around his limbs, surging with electricity and making him shout in pain.

"Let's finish this, Xael."

Sasuke's agonized cries were stopped as swords protruded from his belly from behind. "You're so pathetic," Xael snarled. "You're nothing but a weakling!" She began impaling him repeatedly as quickly as she could, filling the air with his screams until he died, slumping over on her swords.

Naruto looked over as Hinata was on her knees, Karin standing behind her. "Lift her up," he said. He watched as she was pulled up by her arms.

"You're nothing like who I loved," Hinata growled. Something shifted inside her. The gleam in his eyes and the grin on his face seemed to mock her, daring her to do something about it. She screamed in pain as veins throbbed around her eyes even as the seal on her forehead glowed.

Xael stood in front of Naruto with her swords drawn. Naruto simply leaned back on his heals to see what would happen.

Hinata's feet dug into the ground as she rushed him, and Xael by extension. Her fist was inches from the little girl before every bone in her arms shattered. Karin grabbed her wrist and pulled her arm up, ignoring Hinata's agonized cries. Once again the Hyuga was forced to her knees.

"Not my daughter, you bitch," Karin whispered venomously.

"If only I had a mirror, so you could see the fire inside that I see now," Naruto said, looking down at her, not seeming to have any reaction to her failed attack. "That fire once captivated me, but it could never be the eternal blaze I needed in life. Maybe if I had stayed, it could have been cultivated, made into something grand. Once upon a time, it might have been what I needed. Life is cruel, Hinata. I _did_ leave. I _was_ betrayed. And your fire _was_ left to fade. I'm nothing like the man I was when I left. I was weak and saw this village as great. But no longer. I. Am. Not. The man you loved. He died at my hand, and I emerged from his ashes. I'm better than the old me ever was! If only you could have been raised out of the muck like I was to see what I see. But, I gave you your chance. Now die." His own sword went through her heart, and the last thing she saw was a look of disappointment on his face.

"Karin, Xael. Head back home. Something tells me the next fight will be more personal, and things should already be finishing up."

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ ripped apart the battlefield. While the ANBU fared better than some, they too fell to him. Sand grabbed his arm, and lifted him off the ground. He looked around, seeing Gaara controlling the sand.

"You there. Mind putting me down? I believe you're friends with my nephew," Victor said.

"I am, but I know what you're trying to do, and I have been requested to stop you," Gaara replied.

"I see. So he did tell some people. Oh well. Don't worry. You're not mine to kill, so I will do my best to not do so."

Explosions shook the ground and crumbled buildings around them. Their walls buckled, streets filling with dust as they dropped. Deidara flew overhead, carpet bombing the street. The ground cracked under Gaara, undermining his footing. He lost his concentration as the dust enveloped him.

Victor's arm detached, letting him drop to the ground as Gaara's sand cleared the air. He ran in close to get a good hit on Gaara only to see a fist of sand coming down on him. He braced for the hit, but a pair of small tornadoes ripped the sand apart. Kiba and Akamaru landed a few feet away.

"I'm going to stand with Naruto," Kiba shouted.

"So are we," Choji said from Victor's left with Ino at his side.

Victor laughed. "Thanks for the help, you little tikes, but I got this handled." He cracked his neck. Strands of chakra shot into Gaara's sand and ripped his arm free before sending it flying at the Kazekage, launching him into a building. "Go find some people that need help. I can handle a few belligerent Kage." He turned and found who he was looking for. "Kimiko, go find your father. We're going to need him for the final push!"

He ducked as A tried to punch him, his body covered in small bolts of lightning that surged around him. He punched the Raikage in the stomach as savagely as he could, ignoring the pain of electricity shooting through his metal cybernetics and into his entire body.

A coughed up blood as his insides were ripped apart by the force of Victor's attack. He jumped backwards to avoid another hit.

"How pathetic some of you Kage can be," Victor said, his body smoking as he breathed heavily. "You are all so worthless. You were right to fear the Uzumaki, because one of them is about to destroy your wills to live. You were right to fear me, because I'm about to show you what that prison turned me into!" He hunched over, his hands clawing at his head. His body shook will laughter that only became more boisterous and malicious. His eyes locked on A and Gaara as the Kazekage got back on his feet, while the other two kage joined them. "Yes. The one thing that still turns me on. Ripe and fresh prey at last. I _still_ haven't killed enough to attain joy!"

Victor's body exploded, enshrouding the surrounding block in darkness.

A could hear the bones in his left arm shatter before the pain could register. He shouted in rage and pain, kicking at Victor. Shadows wrapped around his leg, lifting him into the air only to slam him back down.

The Tsuchikage was quickly put on the defensive as Victor denied him any reprieve. The metal beating down on his arms, taking any shot at his ribs they could, easily exhausted his strength. Victor sent him to the ground with one more crushing blow, leaving him unable to move.

"Did any of you really think you could stop me?" His words echoed through the darkness. "I'm the last remnant of a forgotten power! The true successors of my power and all the secrets I hold will not be of Konoha! It was never going to be this false home! All who stand in the way of this resurrection will fall at my feet! The week. The strong! I'll show no mercy to them all! I will decide their worth!"

Light ripped apart the darkness as a stream of Magma went flying through the air. Victor basked in the light, leaning back and looking to the sky. His form was altered into that of an indescribable monster as what remained of the dark soaked back into his skin. As he returned to normal, mumbled words fell from his lips.

"This is what you made me. Do you understand that now, father?" He looked at Mei. "Tear them up. Chomp them up." Darkness enveloped him again and distorted his body.

This creature that took his place rushed at the Mizukage. A wall of sand crashed into it, burying it. Metal limbs flew into the air with lines of chakra flowing from them. Victor pulled himself free, sending one limb to pin Gaara while the other grabbed Mei by her robes. He pulled her close, his maw, filled with rows of jagged teeth, clamping down on her shoulder.

Her cries cracked as her vocal cords tore. Flesh and bloody sinew ripped away.

"Tear them, chomp them!" Victor's distorted voice called out. "Just enough, till their blood fill your mouth. Let their taste be put to taste. My tongue stained red and black!"

* * *

 _ **Minato**_ dodged a Rasengan aimed for his head. "Good. Keep going for the killing blows."

"There has to be another way," Jiraiya said. His breathing was heavy, his aged face strained.

"There isn't. Kill me Jiraiya. I can't disobey him. The seals force me to honor our arrangement, but you can stop me."

"Not on my own I can't. But if there is no other way, then let's finish this."

"I can't hold back. Do it now!"

Minato's head was forced into his chest and his body crumpled as Tsunade killed him from above, forcing the ground to crack. She stood above him, her body soaked in blood, looking grim. "I can't believe we just had to do that," she said in quiet shock.

Kimiko ran around the corner. "Dad! Where are-" She cut herself off at what she saw. "No."

"Kimiko, calm down. We didn't have a choice," Jiraiya said. "Let us explain!"

She glared at him and her eyes turned red and a thick crimson chakra surrounded her. "Does my family just have to keep being ripped apart by betrayal?" she demanded. "I'm going to kill you!"

* * *

 _ **Victor**_ stood above a rooftop, looking down on the battle below him.

"We still can't get in," an ANBU told him. They've barricaded themselves in there."

"Then let them stay in. Use your own jutsu to seal every exit and put this into the ventilation system on the roof." He held out a large canister.

"What is it, sir?"

"The people who burned my home called it White Phosphorus." He looked back down to see the Kage and Konoha's army stop moving, standing in shock as the Kyuubi formed and towered above them, it's jaw and claws dripping blood. While A had collected himself, ready to fight Victor, and a Bijuu if need be, it was the formation of a second Nine-Tailed Fox that stopped him in his tracks.

Naruto towered above them all and reached out a hand, placing it on Kimiko's shoulder. " **Time to come back down from this,"** he said. " **Our father has been avenged. They have lost. It's over."**

* * *

 _ **Months**_ passed as Victor established his order in Konoha. The other Kage were all kept alive, used as political pawns to solidify his rule in Konoha. All had become calm, quiet. The Akatsuki members who had resurfaced, now had their freedom. While the others disappeared, Deidara became one of Victor's guards. But even the explosives expert was not allowed to follow him when he played the role of warden in the Twenty-Year Prison.

He walked smoothly through the halls with a scroll in each hand. He went into one cell with a man kneeling in the middle. His face looked sunken and his eyes were missing.

"Have you finally brought them to me? Can I earn my freedom now? Please?" the man asked.

"Yes," Victor said. He unrolled the scrolls and unsealed two bodies. Minato's crushed form to his right and Kushina's cold body to his left.

The man ran his hands along the bodies. "These are very old. You did put the Transcription Seal on them before they died at least?"

"I did. Now, your end of the bargain?"

"Oh, of course." He formed hand signs and concentrated. "It will take a moment to trigger them. So much to undo." They waited quietly for several minutes before the man uttered a single word. "Izanagi."

The bodies faded away before reappearing asleep and breathing. Alive.

"They will wake from this?" Victor asked.

"Of course. Their deaths with have been but a dream."

"Good." He pulled a canister out, containing a pair of hazel brown eyes. "They do not have the Sharingan. And with the Rinnegan destroyed, your old plans can not be enacted. Find your own life, Obito. There will be decent prosthetics waiting for you at the exit instead of the worn out ones you have now."

Obito stood and bowed. "I will. Thank you...sensei." He stumbled out of the cell, disappearing down the halls.

"I wonder if the other inmates will let him make it to the exit," Victor mumbled. He chained Kushina and Minato up and pulled out a pair of syringes. What he injected them with made them jolt awake, screaming.

When they finally calmed down, Victor smiled. "Welcome back to the land of the living. And welcome to the Twenty-Year Prison."

"What the fuck did you do to us?" Kushina asked.

"Well, I made sure your husband was killed, and then I used an old Uchiha technique, the Izanagi, to bring you back to life. Now, onto the nitty gritty. You both failed to stop me. In a week, I will corrupt the barrier with the Hiraishin, a version altered to my specific need, and transport the village of Konoha on top of the ruins of Uzushio. It's why I helped you design the jutsu, Minato. It then took a long time to work out the specifics so I wouldn't just have two villages worth of rubble, but I've finally done it."

"I knew it. It _was_ you that attacked the barrier monitoring facility."

"Yes, dear sister. And now, my plan can't be stopped. I have to ask though, why did you want to save that pathetic village?"

"It was our home."

"No. Uzu, was our home. And then, we were sold as slaves and weapons to Konoha's military, so they could have Uzumaki blood in their ranks. Slaves, you stupid bitch!"

Minato looked shocked by this. "Wait, you were slaves? What are you talking about? The Sandaime granted you assylum."

Victor laughed. "No. A lie my sister wanted me to keep so no one would judge her or pity her. We were property for the longest time. Sold by our father, may he have died suffering! Given tracking seals and told the sentimental shit that it was so we would never lose one another. While it was true, a way to make us not feel alone, it was so our owners could find us! And even when we _earned_ our 'freedom', we were on one side of a war. Any other village wanted us dead or would have turned us over for the bounties. But I worked on plans of retribution for so long. Fifty years I've planned and plotted the downfall of those who took my freedom. Uzushio will rise again. It's almost time for the resurrection. Long before you had me imprisoned. I tried convincing Kushina that it should be done, but she rejected my plans. Decided the Uzumaki should be forgotten. She was broken, and wanted it all to die! She wanted to murder it just like our brother and our mother. Just another way to bury her secret, her shame of what she was when she met you. Hated it so much that you tried to kill your son. But everything the Uzumaki stood for is why I am still here. I am their VENGEANCE!"

He stood up, pacing across the room. "I worked on it in secret until, one day, sister went snooping and found out my plans, that I had continued them despite her warnings. Oh yes, I knew you had found out. But you said nothing. I thought that with as close as I was to completing the plan you had seen my side. Instead, when we were asked to fake an attack on Iwa by the Akatsuki, a way to get the world to see them as more of a danger, she had me framed. Not a detail I found out until five years ago."

"So you did this?" Minato asked. His skin had paled with this revelation. "You framed him and made him hate us?"

"He would have destroyed our home!" Kushina yelled. "Undid all that we had worked for. Naruto would have helped him tear down everything I built for myself! I couldn't allow that."

Victor sighed. "My vengeance on Konoha and on you is at hand. You two are going to be very unique guests of the prison. My prison, by the way. I took it over seven years ago. And since that time, I've tweaked the rules a bit. If one of you doesn't survive the full twenty years, the other never leaves. Meaning that if you, Minato, die, your wife will remain here for the rest of her life. Kushina, if you die, your husband will remain here for the rest of his life. Here's hoping his age doesn't make him keel over."

It took Kushina a moment to process this. "He's already almost seventy."

"Yes. Meanwhile, our vitality makes us still look forty. Gotta love genetics. We Uzumaki can survive upwards of one-hundred and fifty and still be quite spry. Normal people like Minato though? Who knows. Maybe one day the torture and his age will just get to him."

"I'm going to kill you!"

"No. You're not. What's going to happen is, they are going to lock you in rooms with other people and set the room on fire to see how long you can bare the pain, or if you even live. They will cut open your back and strap you to the floor, wait for your blood to scab up and dry and then rip you off the ground. You won't survive this place because you've always been a...better person than me. You can't stoop to the lengths I have to survive. Here's the best part. When one of you dies, they'll take even more care to make sure the other lives as long as possible."

"What makes you so sure that one of us will die?" Minato asked.

"Other than your age? During the last year, they stop giving rations. I had to eat other people to survive. Can you stoop to my level?" Victor asked.

"You actually ate that man at the facility? I thought it might have been a summon."

"Yup. Not my summon. I didn't need their power. And when one of you dies, the other will be fed to make sure they can stretch your life out. But you know what my favorite will be? There isn't a lot of prisoner separation here. The other prisoners, men and women alike, will use you for their disgusting desires, and every time you resist, they will cut a piece of you off. They will have so much fun with you two."

"You fucking monster!" Kushina yelled.

Victor's eyes became dead and hollow. He stood up and removed his clothes until he was naked and his back faced them. They had seen the scars on the front of his body, but the back was worse. Jagged ripping scars, one going up his entire spinal column, horrible burns, and his prosthetics.

"They locked us in a room. They burned us alive. They made us look like clowns, embarrassed us, dressed us up for their sick amusement. They forced me to do things no human should ever do just to survive. Don't think it can get much worse? Well, I got some bad fucking news for you." He turned to face them and took a knee. "When they use you for their sick depravity, do you know where they start to take from if you resist? Do you know where they start if you resist them trying to make you their personal toys?! They start with the fingers, one knuckle at a time. Then they keep taking." He began crying, his eyes dripping more with everything he listed off. "Your hands. Your arms. Your toes, feet, and legs. A lung. A spleen. Your kidneys. Four ribs, one at a time. One of twenty-four vertebrae that make up the spine each fucking time. A half of your liver every time." he paused, broken down and sobbing at their feet now. "An eye. Just one. They want you to always be able to watch what they do to you. And if you get out, and ever try to be intimate, the pain and the horrible memories will stop you. In a way, they will take your ability to reproduce. They will stop you from being able to have children of your own, because the nightmares will haunt you. I'm afraid that even if I had a child, all I would see in that crib would be another shackle they would have on my heart. Another way to make me suffer!"

He sat there like that for a time, crying in a way he had not done in years, letting out all of the agony he had held inside. Agony he had held inside since he had gone to Konoha as a child, waiting for this moment. Waiting until he could finally let go of it all. As long as it had to take, he would pour out his soul and cleanse it of everything that made him suffer throughout his life.

And, when he was finally done, he wiped the tears away and stood up. He was quiet as he got dressed. He turned to them again. His eyes were red, but they showed a small light and his face was calm.

"I am a monster," Victor said. "But that's because you made me one. This time, I get to play the role of Frankenstien. Can you even recognize me, sister? From what we truly once were? Now it's you who will suffer. I will never see either of you again. Kushina, I took away the seal our father gave us before he died. You'll never be able to find me even if you do get out of here. This is the end of the story. If you do get out, the Land of Spring will be waiting with cybernetics for you on my orders. Now I'm going to go live with my family. Finally I will be able to live in peace."

"Do you think Kimiko will forgive you?" Kushina asked.

Victor turned to her and saw that she had been crying, though now she only looked at the ground. "I hope she will. If not, that is alright. I deserve her disdain. I've lied to her, and your true fates will be the one thing I can never tell her. I've twisted her perception, forced her to see my truth instead of letting her choose what was true. But I hope one day she will. She will always have a home with me and her brother and her sister-in-law, and her niece. I have the family I wanted, and the vengeance I wanted, and, soon, the home I wanted back. What happens next? Well, I'll deal with that when the time comes. I leave Konoha, you two, and this prison where it belongs. In the last chapter of my life. I'm turning the page. Goodbye." He walked out of the cell and began making his way to the exit.

"Victor, I'm sorry!" Kushina cried after him.

"For what? All debts have finally been paid in full."

* * *

 **[A/N] I promised that Hinata and Sasuke wouldn't be together by the end. I kept my promise.**


End file.
